Memory controllers, systems, and methods supporting multiple request modes

ABSTRACT

A memory system includes a memory controller with a plurality N of memory-controller blocks, each of which conveys independent transaction requests over external request ports. The request ports are coupled, via point-to-point connections, to from one to N memory devices, each of which includes N independently addressable memory blocks. All of the external request ports are connected to respective external request ports on the memory device or devices used in a given configuration. The number of request ports per memory device and the data width of each memory device changes with the number of memory devices such that the ratio of the request-access granularity to the data granularity remains constant irrespective of the number of memory devices.

FIELD

This invention relates to semiconductor memory technology as well asrelated uses of the semiconductor memory technology.

BACKGROUND

The design and fabrication technology of semiconductor memory deviceshas evolved rapidly over the past decade. In the case of dynamic randomaccess memories (DRAMs), for example, the number of bits of data storedin a single DRAM chip has increased by a factor of four roughly everythree years. This has resulted in the doubling of the size of memorysystems at the same rate. Each new higher density generation of DRAMsreduces the number of individual memory chips needed in a system by onehalf. Fewer (but higher density) individual DRAM chips in memory systemsresults in fewer total number of pins available for transfer of datawithin the system. Reducing the number of pins available for receivingand transmitting information decreases the bandwidth of the memorysystem. That is, while internal to the memory chip large numbers of bitscan be accessed per cycle, only a small percentage of the data can makeit across the device boundary to the external world in any given timeinterval.

Today's advanced computing systems and microprocessors, however, demandgreater and greater data bandwidths from memory systems. This hasresulted in a more concerted effort in the memory industry to devisesolutions to the bandwidth bottleneck. One approach to improving thedata bandwidth in memory systems has focused on designing high speedinterface structures. A memory sub-system based on a very fast andefficient interface technology that exploits a number of innovative datatransmission techniques is described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,319,755(Farmwald et al.) and U.S. Pat. No. 5,430,676 (Ware et al.). Otherapproaches have focused more on the internal circuitry of the memorydevices to increase the rate of data transfer.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The subject matter disclosed is illustrated by way of example, and notby way of limitation, in the figures of the accompanying drawings and inwhich like reference numerals refer to similar elements and in which:

FIG. 1 shows system with a controller coupled to a memory in a firstconfiguration.

FIG. 2 shows the system of FIG. 1 in a second configuration.

FIG. 3 shows the system of FIG. 1 in a third configuration.

FIG. 4 shows a system with a controller coupled to a memory in a fourthconfiguration.

FIG. 5 shows the system of FIG. 4 in a fifth configuration.

FIG. 6 shows the system of FIG. 4 in a sixth configuration.

FIG. 7 illustrates a simplified schematic for a memory for use in thesystem of FIGS. 1-6, in this illustration the write datapath routerdetail is provided.

FIG. 8 illustrates a simplified schematic for the read datapath routerfor the memory of FIG. 7.

FIG. 9 is a diagram of an unbuffered module embodiment in a baseconfiguration.

FIG. 10 is a diagram of an unbuffered module embodiment in an upgradedconfiguration.

FIG. 11A is a diagram of an unbuffered module for use in the system ofFIGS. 9-10.

FIG. 11B shows a timing diagram comparing the request (RQ) serializationbetween DDR3, GDDR3/4, XDR, and the serialization used according to oneembodiment described herein.

FIG. 11C shows an alternative system employing a controller according toone embodiment described herein.

FIG. 11D shows a possible clocking and signaling approach usableaccording to one embodiment described herein.

FIG. 12 is a block diagram illustrating a memory system 1200 in a firstmode of operation, according to one embodiment of the presentdisclosure.

FIG. 13 is a block diagram illustrating a memory system 1250 in a secondmode of operation, according to one embodiment.

FIG. 14 is a flowchart illustrating a method of operating a memorysystem in a plurality of modes of operation, according to one embodimentof the present disclosure.

FIG. 15 is a block diagram illustrating a memory system 1500 in a firstmode of operation, according to another embodiment of the presentdisclosure.

FIG. 16 is a block diagram illustrating a memory system in a second modeof operation.

FIG. 17 is a flowchart illustrating a method of operating a memorysystem in a plurality of operation modes.

FIG. 18 is a block diagram illustrating a memory system with a“point-to-2-point” CA link topology.

FIG. 19 depicts a memory system 1900 that includes an IC memorycontroller 1905 connected to a single IC memory device (e.g. a DRAM die)1910 in accordance with one embodiment.

FIG. 20 shows a timing diagram 2000 in which four read transactions aredirected to banks located in each of the four quads BLKA0, BLKA1, BLKB0,and BLKB1 in memory 1910 of FIG. 19.

FIG. 21 depicts a dual-device memory system 2100 in which controller1905 of FIG. 19 is configured to communicate with two memory devices1905, for twice the memory capacity of system 1900, while maintainingthe same number of banks and the same access granularity.

FIG. 22 shows a timing diagram 2200 in which four read transactions aredirected to banks located in each of the four quads BLKA0, BLKA1, BLKB0,and BLKB1 of each of the two memory devices (e.g. DRAMS) 1910 of system2100 of FIG. 21.

FIG. 23 depicts a four-device memory system 2300 in which controller1905 of FIG. 19 is configured to communicate with four memory devices1905, for four times the memory capacity of system 1900, whilemaintaining the same number of logical memory banks and the same accessgranularity for slices 2105, and controller 1905 generally.

FIG. 24 depicts an integrated memory device 1910 in accordance with oneembodiment, including all the interface ports and major internal circuitblocks.

FIG. 25 depicts a memory system 2500 in accordance with anotherembodiment.

FIG. 26 details portions of system 2500 of FIG. 25, two controller-sidedata interfaces 2605 and 2610 and two memory-device-side data interfaces2615 and 2620.

FIG. 27 depicts the configuration process for an “even” write link inthe loop-back mode.

FIG. 28 depicts a memory system in accordance an embodiment in which aprinted-circuit board 2800 supports a memory controller 2805, a memorymodule 2810, and three continuity modules 2815.

FIG. 29 depicts the memory system introduced in FIG. 28 in a dual-moduleconfiguration, or mode.

FIG. 30 depicts the memory system described in connection with FIGS. 28and 29, but this time in a fully-populated, four-module configuration.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Overview

An advanced memory device and system with multiple request (RQ) ports isdisclosed. Embodiments allow RQ bandwidth to scale with data (DQ)bandwidth by using similar point-to-point topologies and signaling rateswhile allowing capacity scaling with provisions for maintaining low orconstant access granularity. The description of the figures focuses onshowing the routing of communications and the operation of the devicesbut often omits detailed schematics that would otherwise clutter thedescription and occlude comprehension of the embodiments shown.

Terminology and Notation

“Point-to-point”: For purposes of this description, the term“point-to-point” will generally refer to a dedicated communicationchannel between two points, e.g. a controller to a memory. Generally,the point-to-point signal will travel directly between the two pointswithout intermediate active components. However, in some cases buffersand/or inverters, or other items may be present on the signaling path.The general contrast is versus a shared communication channel, such as amultidrop bus, where the same channel is shared with other activecomponents, e.g. for the controller to talk to a first memory, thesignal must pass through a second memory.

“Port”: For purposes of this description, the term “port” will generallyrefer to one or more signaling wires used to transmit a logicallyrelated group of information. For example, if a unit of transmissioncomprises two symbols transmitted in series using single-endedsignaling, then one port in that example could be physically implementedusing a single wire, or printed circuit board (PCB) trace, etc. If thesame unit of transmission was sent using differential signaling, thenone port could be physically implemented using two wires, or PCB traces,etc. In the memory context of one request (RQ) packet one port providesadequate signaling wires for all of the necessary command and address(CA or C/A) information to describe the request based on the signalingmethodology, symbol encodings, and serialization/deserialization in use.The meaning for DQ packets and ports is analogous. Note that ifmultiwire coding schemes are used for transmission, it may be that somewires are shared across multiple ports in the specific physicalimplementation on a given chip and/or circuit.

Number of Ports Shown on Figures: Since reconfigurable memorycontrollers and memory devices and related systems are a focus ofembodiments described herein, it is convenient in the figures to oftennotate the number of ports in use for a given function, e.g. either RQor DQ. For example, In FIG. 1, the memory device 102A is shown with RQ4×1 and DQ 4×8. This indicates a configuration that includes foursingle-link RQ ports and four eight-link DQ ports. Contrast that withFIG. 3, where the same memory device 102A is shown with RQ 1×1 and DQ1×8, which indicates a configuration that includes one single-link RQport and one eight-link DQ port. FIG. 7 and the accompanying text,infra, provide context for a single implementation of the memory devices102A-D shown in FIGS. 1-6. In some embodiments the number of ports thatare in use may be different from the number of physical ports. Whether agiven reference is to a physical port or a subset of physical ports thathappens to be used in a given embodiment will be clear in context.

“Request” or “RQ”: When used in the context of memory in thisdescription, the term request (RQ) is interchangeable for command andaddress (C/A). Similarly, C/A may be used interchangeably for RQ.

Example Systems

FIGS. 1-3 show the capacity scaling capabilities of this configurablepoint-to-point architecture via discussion of an exemplary system 100.

FIG. 1 shows a system 100 according to a first configuration. In thisconfiguration, a controller 101 is coupled in communication with amemory device 102A. Controller 101 has four single-link request ports RQand, for each request port, an eight-link data port DQ. In this firstconfiguration, all of the RQ ports (four single-link ports, or 4×1) andall of the DQ ports (four eight-link ports, or 4×8) of the controller101 are coupled in communication with a single memory device 102A. Asdiscussed above, the physical wiring or communication topology isimplementation specific. For example if the system employs a 32 symbolrequest packet then each of the four RQ ports will receive a differentpacket per period of time. In this configuration each of the requestports is coupled to a different memory array inside the memory device.See the discussion of FIG. 7, infra, for more on the memory device 102A.Alternate terms for the memory array may be quadrants (quads), orsections. The memory array itself may be subdivided into multiple banks.Throughout these examples, a burst length, or prefetch, of 32 symbolsper link is assumed in calculations unless otherwise noted.

It is useful to consider that some embodiments make advantageous use ofhigh speed RQ ports that might be as little as one link (e.g. one wirefor single ended signaling or two wires for differential signaling). Insuch embodiments, if the RQ links run at, or close to, the speed of theDQ links there are fewer wires associated with each RQ port to route.For example, in an XDR® memory system, there are 12 single-ended wires,or links, used to provide request (command and address) information tothe memory devices. Each request packet is 24 bits sent in two symbolsper packet across the 12 links. (See the discussion of FIG. 11B, infra,for a sample timing diagram.) In the nomenclature of this description,those 12 single-ended wires, or links, would be considered one RQ port.In contrast, according to some embodiments the RQ link or links can beimplemented using one or more differential wiring pair conveying requestpackets at the same speed as the DQ links (e.g., 32 symbol or RQpackets). In such embodiments, FIG. 1 would require only fourdifferential wiring pairs (8 total wires) to couple all four RQ ports ofthe controller 101 to the RQ ports of the memory device 102A. Accordingto the illustrated embodiment, the bit rate for each RQ link isidentical to the bit rate for each DQ link, so one RQ link could send anindependent read or write request for 32 bytes (32 symbols×8 DQ linksper RQ link). If four (4) concurrent requests are sent over each of thefour RQ ports, the total number of data bytes accessed per packet timewould be 4×32 bytes, or 128 bytes.

FIG. 2 shows system 100 in a dual-device configuration in whichcontroller 101 is coupled in communication with memory devices 102A and102B. Controller 101 has two RQ ports coupled to each memory device102A, and each memory device 102A is configured to include twosingle-link RQ ports (e.g. 2×1). The DQ ports on controller 101 aresimilarly split, two to memory device 102A and two to memory device102B, or sixteen data links to each memory device. To accommodate thissplit, each memory device is configured to provide two single-linkrequest ports (2×1). As a result, the total number of data bytesaccessed per memory device 102A (or memory device 102B) per packet timeis cut in half to 2×32 bytes, or 64 bytes. The controller 101 will addadditional addressing information, e.g. 1 bit, to each request packetsent over the RQ ports because the controller 101 needs to address twicethe memory device capacity as in FIG. 1, but now at half the number ofdata bytes per memory device per packet time. See the discussion of FIG.7, infra, to see how the four memory arrays within a device can bedivided into even and odd groupings. In one embodiment, the size of theRQ packet remains fixed, e.g. 32 symbols, despite the additionaladdressing information. The DQ packet length remains fixed since theembodiments of FIGS. 1-3 are focused on capacity scalability.

FIG. 3 shows the system 100 according to a third configuration. In thisconfiguration, the controller 101 is coupled in communication withmemory devices 102A-D. Of the four RQ ports on the controller 101, oneis coupled to each of the memory devices 102A-D. Similarly, of the fourDQ ports, one (eight data links) is coupled to each of the memorydevices 102A-D. As a result, the total number of data bytes accessed permemory device 102A-D per packet time is cut in half again compared toFIG. 2, to 1×32 bytes, or 32 bytes total. Here, the controller addsstill more addressing information than used in FIG. 2, e.g. one bitmore, to each RQ packet, all while maintaining the size of the RQ packetfixed, because the controller 101 will need to address twice the memorydevice capacity as in FIGS. 1-2, but now at 32 data bytes per memorydevice per packet time. The request interface of each memory deviceincludes one, single-link port in this configuration. Thus in this thirdconfiguration, the four RQ packets each go to different memory devices,and each memory device 102A-D has 8 DQ links that are routed to theappropriate memory array within the device according to the addressinginformation. DQ packet time is unchanged in this configuration. Ineffect, the memory capacity doubles in FIG. 2 as compared with FIG. 1,and doubles again in FIG. 3, all while maintaining the same number ofpoint-to-point connections for both the data DQ and request RQ linksthat extend between memory controller 101 and the attached memory deviceor devices. Also advantageous from the memory controller's perspective,the transaction granularity is the same for one, two, or four memorydevices. The storage capacity of system 100 can thus be scaled whilemaintaining the use of point-to-point connections and constant per-portaccess granularity.

Having described the basic topology and layout of the elements, system100 will now be described in greater detail along with the functionalaspects. In one embodiment the system 100 is a computer system, e.g. aserver computer, a video game console, or a personal computer; a printedcircuit board; multi-chip-module, or system-on/in-package.

The controller 101 is an integrated circuit with a memory controller,e.g. a CPU, GPU, north bridge, south bridge, etc. For example, in oneembodiment the system 100 could be a game console system, the controller101 could be a modified Cell Broadband Engine from IBM. The game consolesystem could have a fixed number of memory devices of the same type asmemory device 102A, e.g. two devices such as in FIG. 2. Other numbers ofmemory devices than shown in FIGS. 1-3 could be supported off a singlecontroller with appropriate adjustments to the number of RQ/DQ ports onthe controller 101. See e.g. discussion of FIG. 11, infra.

The memory devices 102A-D may be any read/write memory with a suitableinterface for communicating with the controller, e.g. RAMs, DRAMs,non-volatile memory, SRAM—or even ROM devices in read only mode—mightalso be used. The memory devices 102A-D can be either directly coupledto the system 100, e.g., soldered to the printed circuit board (PCB) orremovable on modules such as DIMMs, SIMMs, etc. See discussion of FIG.9, infra, for one embodiment using modules.

Summarizing, different embodiments provide a way to have a singlecontroller, e.g. controller 101, that supports a wide range of memorycapacity (one to four memory devices in the example) while maintainingpoint-to-point routing for both RQ and DQ ports. All of the memorydevices 102A-D are coupled to the controller in a point-to-pointfashion. In these embodiments, the memory devices 102A-D areprogrammable in DQ width and have configurable request logic. Theprogrammability and reconfigurability can be auto-detecting based on thepresence/absence of memory devices or modules, programmable through oneor more fusable, flashable, or electrically programmable registers, setthrough jumpers on the system 100, controlled by the request packetinformation, and/or other means. These embodiments all offer advantagesin that a single type of memory device, e.g. memory device 102A, can beused in very different configurations.

The controller 101 can also be used in another set of configurations forscalable access granularity. In the three configurations discussed sofar in connection with FIGS. 1-3, the access granularity per RQ portremained constant at 32 bytes. This result can be derived from thefollowing assumptions, 32 symbols/DQ link/request×8 DQ links/RQ port.The controller 101 can also be used in configurations that allowgranularity scalability, which will be described in conjunction withFIGS. 4-6.

FIG. 4 shows a system 400 in a fourth configuration. The system 400provides for granularity scalability using different configurations. Inthe fourth configuration, controller 101 is coupled to memory device102A. Notably, only one of the four RQ ports (1/4) in the controller 101is used in this first configuration. Again, per the discussion ofnotation, supra, the actual number of ports on the controller 101 andmemory device 102A may be different. The relevant point is the number inuse in this configuration. Following through this example of FIGS. 4-6the adaptability of a single memory device 102A to a variety ofdifferent controller configurations will be apparent. Note that theaddress length in each request packet in FIG. 4 would be shorter thanthe address information for the system 100 as configured in FIG. 1. Thisis because the same memory with larger access granularity has feweraddressable locations. However, the request packet format could still beof a constant size across all of these configurations.

In the fifth configuration shown in FIG. 5, system 400 has thecontroller 101 coupled to the memory device 102A using two of the fourRQ ports (2/4) on the controller 101 and the memory device 102A. In thesixth configuration, of FIG. 6, all four RQ ports (4/4) are used on bothdevices. Using the example, in the fourth configuration, shown in FIG.4, the access granularity would be 128 bytes. This result can be derivedfrom the following assumptions: 32 symbols/DQ link/request×32 DQlinks/RQ channel. The access granularity would be 64 bytes, and 32bytes, in FIGS. 5 and 6, respectively, because the number of DQ linksassociated with each request channel would be 16 and 8, respectively.System 400 thus allows system designers to allocate the minimum RQ linksrequired for a desired access granularity.

In one embodiment only the desired number of request links areimplemented on the controller 101 for the desired system accessgranularity. The memory device 102A can be programmed to the desirednumber of independent request channels. Specifically, a game consolesystem maker might prefer 128 byte access granularity while desktop andserver computers system makers might prefer 32 byte access granularity.Accordingly, each manufacturer might only put the actual number ofexternal request ports needed for their desired access granularity;however, the same memory device 102A can be used by these vastlydifferent configurations. For example, the desire to have controller pinsavings and/or cost reduction might be why the number of request portsmight be varied on the controller 101.

As discussed memory device 102A will include one or more memory arrays,sometimes called quadrants, sections, or sectors, or even banks. Eachmemory array is capable of decoding independent access (e.g. read)requests. The request router within the memory device 102A can beconfigured to broadcast the same request to all memory arrays, to sendunique requests to each memory array, and/or combinations of these orother options to make efficient use of the memory arrays. This isfurther described together with an example implementation in FIGS. 7-8.Additionally, each of the memory arrays may make use of micro-threadingand may be comprised of smaller arrays of memory cells. In laterexamples, memory arrays are divided into four independently addressable“quads,” each of which includes four banks.

FIG. 7 illustrates a simplified schematic for a memory device 102A foruse in the system of FIGS. 1-6. The elements of FIG. 7 will be describedfollowed by their use.

Memory device 102A is comprised of four memory arrays 700A-D. Morearrays are possible in alternate configurations. Each memory array700A-D is capable of independent operation. The memory arrays arecoupled to a request router 702, a write datapath router 704 and a readdatapath router 706. For clarity, the read datapath router 706 is notshown in detail in FIG. 7. FIG. 8 provides details on the read datapathrouter 706. For the rest of the discussion of FIG. 7, the details of theread datapath router 706 will be omitted with the understanding that theoperation and functionality parallels the write datapath router 704.

The request router 702 and write datapath router 704 receive selectsignals: RQ Config select 710 and DQ width select 708, respectively.These may be distinct signals or the same signal. The signal may becoming from off the memory device 102A, e.g. from settings, jumpers,signals, wires, etc., or the signal may be calculated on the memorydevice 102A, e.g. with using a combination of registers, logic, etc. Ineither case, the RQ Config select 710 controls the number of C/A portsused while the DQ width select 708 controls the width of the device andthe number of DQ ports used. In the example embodiment with four memoryarrays 700A-D, the select signals vary from zero to two. Specifically,if RQ Config select 710 is zero, then only one request port RQ0 will beused; if one then two request ports RQ0 and RQ1 will be used; if twothen all four request ports RQ[3:0] will be used. In a similar fashionthe DQ width select 708 varies the width of the memory device: if zerothen one DQ port is used (links DQ[7:0]); if one then two DQ ports areused (links DQ[7:0] and DQ[15:8]); and if two then four DQ ports areused (links DQ[7:0], DQ[15:8], DQ[23:16], and DQ[31:24]). In otherembodiments scaling can be in ×1, ×2, ×4, ×8, ×16, and ×32. Still otherscaling factors are possible. Write enable signals to the memory arrays700A-D are elided for clarity of illustration. See, e.g., FIGS. 18-20 ofUS Patent Publication 2004/0221106, and accompanying text for adiscussion of write enable at the module level for routing signals tomemory devices in a configurable point-to-point topology.

Changing the value of the RQ Config select 710 and the DQ width select708 switches the memory device 102A to be able to operate in thedifferent configurations described above in connection with FIGS. 1-6.

Select 716A-H are logic that use the values of the RQ Config select 710and the DQ width select 708 to achieve the routing of signals inside therequest router 702 and the write datapath router 704. In one embodimentthe select 716A-H are implemented using multiplexers. In this exampleconfiguration, the RQ Config select 710 and the DQ width select 708might be two wires to provide inputs to the multiplexers.

The other components of the memory device 102A are shown briefly forreference. Specifically on the request side, buffers followed bydeserializers 712A-D and memory request controllers 714A-D (abbreviatedCTL in figure) are used. The memory request controllers 714A-D arecoupled to the request router 702.

The memory request controllers 714A-D (labeled CTL 0 through CTL 3)receive deserialized command and address information, decode it, andgenerate address and control signals to interface to the memory arrays700A-D. The memory request controllers 714A-D may include statemachines, registers, decoders, sequencers, and the like. The exampleembodiment shows the memory request controllers 714A-D placed in frontof the request router 702. The memory request controllers 714A-D couldoptionally be placed after the request router 702. In that embodiment,the request router would route deserialized, but undecoded requestinformation. The request router 702 functionality is independent of thespecific information being routed.

On the DQ side, buffers followed by deserializers 720A-D accept theinput from outside the memory device 102A and serializers 722A-D arecoupled to buffers to send output from the memory to the outside. Thedeserializers 720A-D and serializers 722A-D are coupled to respectivedatapath modules 718A-D. The datapath modules 718A-D are coupled to thewrite datapath router 704 (and the read datapath router 706).

The datapath modules 718A-D (abbreviated DP in figure) provide supportfor both read and writes. In some embodiments the datapath modules718A-D have separate read and write paths. For writes, the datapathmodules 718A-D perform modifications of the write data (e.g. bitinversion, error correction, masked byte replacement, mask keycomparison, etc.) and generate, or transmit, write data and write enablesignals to the memory arrays 700A-D. For reads, the datapath modules718A-D perform any necessary modification of the read data (e.g. bitinversion, error correction, parity generation, latency modification,etc.) as it is forwarded from the memory arrays 700A-D to theserializers. As discussed in connection with the memory requestcontrollers 714A-D, the datapath modules 718A-D could be locatedafter/before the write datapath router 704/read datapath router 706 andthe functionality of those routers is independent of the specificinformation being routed.

FIG. 8 illustrates a simplified schematic for the read datapath router706 for the memory device 102A of FIG. 7. Specifically focusing ondifferent elements versus FIG. 7, the read datapath router 706 is nowshown in detail including selects 816A-B for achieving the routingfunctionality. Two read selects are provided in this example embodimentto control selects 816A-B: read CH 0 select 802 and read CH 1 select804. The value of these two is a function of the current settings for DQwidth select 708 and the address decode. See, e.g., FIGS. 18-20 of USPatent Publication 2004/0221106 and accompanying text for a discussionof address decode at the module level for routing signals to memorydevices in a configurable point-to-point topology.

In some embodiments, use of the request ports can be multiplexed in timeto stagger requests across different memory arrays. For example, if onerequest is in use, instead of sending the same packet to all four memoryarrays, the C/A information can be staggered in time such that differentC/A information is provided to each memory array within the device.

Although one embodiment of the write datapath router 704 and the readdatapath router 706 are shown, other routing embodiments are possible toprovide for flexible use of the memory arrays 700A-D. For example, afull crossbar with the capability to route any input port to any to anyoutput port based upon a dynamic route selection could be used. Routeselection in these embodiments could be decoded from input pins, fuses,register settings, address bits and/or fields of the request packets,other signals, and/or some combination of these options.

Use in Conjunction with Memory Modules

The discussion of FIGS. 1-6 concerning system configurations employingmemory devices and controllers supporting a variety of embodiments hasfocused primarily on controllers coupled directly to individual memorydevices—as opposed to memory devices on memory modules. Embodiments thatmake use of modules such as DIMMs, SIMMs, and/or other types of memorymodules are also possible. These embodiments have two primary flavors:unbuffered and buffered. FIG. 9 illustrates an unbuffered moduleembodiment.

FIG. 9 is a diagram of an unbuffered module embodiment in a baseconfiguration. The upgraded configuration will be considered inconjunction with FIG. 10, infra. FIG. 9 illustrates a system 900 with acontroller 902 and sockets 903A-B to receive memory modules andcontinuity modules. In the base configuration, a memory module 906A isshown in socket 903A and a continuity module 920A is shown in socket903B. The continuity module can also be referred to as a shortingmodule. The portion of controller 902 shown has two portions 904A-B,these portions can also be called memory channels. The implementation ofcontroller 902 need not separate the two portions physically, e.g. theycan be intermingled. Not shown in the figure are a parallel “bottomhalf” of the system 900 where the controller 902 has two additionalportions, communication paths and sockets for two additional memorymodules or continuity modules. The operation of portion 904A will bediscussed; portion 904B operates in a like fashion. The unseen bottomportions also operate in a like fashion. In considering the capacity andother characteristics of the system 900, the contribution of memorymodules, memory devices, etc., will be considered.

Whether the two portions 904A-B operate independently or in “lock step”(e.g. independent request information for DQ ports in portion 904A andportion 904B or common, identical, request information) is animplementation decision. Additionally, solid circles identify activecommunications ports. In this single-module configuration, portion 904Ais coupled to a memory module 906A and a continuity module 920A. Thecontinuity module 920A, sometimes called a shorting module, is insertedin the base configuration of system 900 to provide the point-to-pointconnections “back to” memory module 906A. Alternative embodiments do notuse continuity modules and instead use other approaches to provide thepoint-to-point topology back to memory module 906A.

The memory module 906A includes memory devices 908A-D. Each of which isof the general design of memory device 102A which was discussed supra inconjunction with FIGS. 7-8 in detail; however, in this example, memorydevices 908A-D have only two request ports and two eight-link DQ ports.All connections from the controller 902 to the memories 908A-D arepoint-to-point. In the base configuration, in portion 904A, the tworequest ports that communicate to module 906A directly are routed to arespective request port on each of memory devices 908A-B. The other tworequest ports on portion 904A communicate to the memory devices 908A-B,one request port on each memory by way of the continuity module 920A.The DQ configuration is analogous but in bundles of eight links. Thespecific on-module routing of the RQ and DQ ports on modules 906A-B isomitted for clarity.

FIG. 10 is a diagram of an unbuffered module embodiment in an upgradedconfiguration. It is similar to FIG. 9, however the continuity module920A has been removed from the socket 903B and replaced with a memorymodule 906B having memory devices 908E-H (all of which of are of likedesign to the memory devices 908A-D). As shown, all of the memorydevices 908A-H now make use of only a single RQ port and a singleeight-link DQ port. This is directly analogous to the difference betweenFIG. 1 and FIG. 2. In FIG. 10, open circles with dotted line pathsindicate inactive communication ports. Specifically, the dotted linesbetween memory module 906A and memory module 906B show that thoserequest links for the path back to memory module 906A are not active forthe memory channel being driven by portion 904A.

Assuming that the system 900 requires at least one filled socket foreach “half” of the controller 902 (e.g. two module minimum since this isa four socket system), the two configurations are possible as outlinedin Table 1.

TABLE 1 Upgraded System Attribute Base (FIG. 9) (FIG. 10) Memory modules2 4 Continuity modules 2 0 Devices per module 4 4 Memory device C/Awidth 2 1 Memory device DQ width 16  8 Total # of memory devices 8 16 C/A bandwidth X Gbps X Gbps (and DQ bandwidth) Capacity Y GB 2Y GBAccess granularity Z Bytes Z BytesThe units used in Table 1 are for reference purposes only, other unitsmore appropriate to the specific values of X, Y, and Z would workequally well.

As shown, this system 900 provides the capacity benefits in amodularized form. Some observations flow from the discussion of this:

-   -   The number of RQ ports per portion can grow asymptotically up to        the number of DQ links per portion (e.g. to support        high-capacity configurations).    -   The maximum number of memory devices in the system is limited by        the number of RQ ports in the unbuffered module case, since all        memory devices are served via point-to-point RQ and DQ links.    -   Using buffered modules (not illustrated) could allow for        additional modules per RQ port or DQ port behind each buffer.

FIG. 11A is a diagram of an unbuffered module for use in the system ofFIGS. 9-10. The memory module 906A is shown in greater detail. FIG. 11is illustrative of the base configuration of FIG. 9 and the specificrouting of the RQ and DQ ports is apparent. In the upgradedconfiguration of FIG. 10, the communications channels on the right handside of the memory module 906A would be unused.

Comparative Timing Diagrams

FIG. 11B shows a timing diagram comparing the request (RQ) serializationbetween DDR3, GDDR3/4, XDR, and the serialization used according to oneembodiment described herein. The timing diagram shown also illustratesthe serialization of data DQ according to several existing approaches.The bottom section labeled “TBI” illustrates a proposed serializationfor RQ and DQ according to embodiments described herein. In the example,a 16 Gbps (gigabit per second) data rate is used for transmitting bothrequests and data. As seen in the rightmost column, in this embodiment,a single RQ packet comprises 32 bits.

Alternative System Diagram

FIG. 11C shows an alternative system employing a controller according toone embodiment described herein. The item labeled controller iscomprised of multiple portions labeled PHY with memory devices (shownwith label Mem) coupled to the controller via two C/A ports and two DQports. FIG. 11C is notable because it shows how to use the scalablegranularity of the memory device 102A and controller 101 in alarge-scale system. The controller illustrated has the ability to issueone or two requests per memory device and up to thirty-two concurrentrequests to the memory system. FIG. 11C shows a one TBps (terabyte persecond) memory system at 64-byte access granularity. However, 32-byteaccess granularity would also be possible, as would 128-byte byincreasing the number of request ports used per portion on thecontroller to four; however, the memory device type need not bechanged—only the memory device configuration, e.g. through theconfiguration selects discussed, supra, in connection with FIGS. 7-8.One difference between FIG. 11C and FIGS. 9-10 is that system 900employs point-to-point routing of the RQ and DQ ports from thecontroller past empty sockets (e.g. using continuity modules) forcapacity expansion. This requires the memory module to include somerouting of the RQ and DQ ports to handle the different module topologiesthat are possible. In FIG. 11C, to the extent memory modules are usedthey are for convenience of insertion of the memory devices, e.g. thereis no use of continuity modules.

Clocking and Signaling

FIG. 11D shows a possible clocking and signaling approach usableaccording to one embodiment described herein. The controller (e.g. 101or 902) and memory devices (e.g. 102A-D and 908A-H) can use fullydifferential signaling, though other clocking and signaling approachesare possible. This example uses wire-only clock distribution

The embodiments of FIGS. 1-11D allow request bandwidth to scale withdata bandwidth by using the same or similar point-to-point topologiesand signaling rates for requests and data while allowing capacityscaling with provisions for maintaining low or constant accessgranularity. In order to obtain maximum flexibility with respect tocapacity and granularity scaling, it is advantageous for the number ofindependently controlled memory array sections to be greater than orequal to the number of request channels implemented. However, there aremany possible ways to utilize a memory device with this degree ofconfiguration flexibility in a system, and only a few of the possibleembodiments have been described here.

One configuration would be four RQ ports with four memory arrays on amemory. This would in turn lead to the following common configurations:one RQ port drives all memory arrays; two RQ ports, one drives “even”memory arrays and the other “odd” memory arrays; each of four RQ portsindependently drives one memory array. The number of RQ ports may bevaried with the width of the datapath to allow fixed access granularityper request port. The memory systems can support micro-threading in someembodiments, which allows the controller to independently addressdifferent parts of a memory-device core.

Embodiments with Constant Request-Access and Data Granularity

The approaches described in connection with FIGS. 1-11D can be appliedin a variety of applications to allow a memory controller to accommodatenumbers and types of memory die and/or memory modules. The memorycontroller supports a flexible, pin-efficient request interface thatprovide for high-speed, point-to-point request links, and that can beused by one memory device or module, or can be shared among a number ofdevices or a number of modules, while preserving request and data-accessgranularity.

Some embodiments support adjustable request-packet signaling rates, anda selected rate may depend upon the number of memory modules or devicesin a given memory system, and/or how many memory devices reside on arespective memory module. In a dual-device mode, for example, a memorycontroller conveys request packets to two memory devices via respectiverequest ports at the same signaling rate. The two memory devices mayreside on a same module or on different modules. In a single-devicemode, the memory controller conveys request packets to a single memorydevice via both ports at a signaling rate lower than (e.g., half of) thesignaling rate used in the dual-module mode. Memory systems inaccordance with the various embodiments may include a buffer coupledbetween the memory controller and the one or more memory devices. Thebuffer may reside on a memory module on which both the first and secondmemory devices reside.

FIG. 12 is a block diagram illustrating a memory system 1200 in a firstmode of operation, according to one embodiment of the presentdisclosure. The memory system 1200 includes at least one memory module1202, a memory controller 1220, and a communication channel 1230coupling the memory module 1202 to the memory controller 1220. In oneembodiment, the communication channel 1230 includes data (DQ) linksforming one or more DQ ports (e.g., DQ1 link, DQ2 link) andcommand/address (CA) links forming one or more CA ports (e.g., CA1 link,CA2 link). For example, the DQ lines and CA lines may be formed usingsignal traces on or in a circuit board (e.g., a motherboard) to whichthe controller 1220 and the memory module 1202 are secured.

The memory module 1202 may include one or more memory devices, such asmemory devices 1204 and 1206, a connector 1218 for coupling the memorymodule 1202 to the DQ and CA links in the communication channel 1230,and conductive lines, or traces, 1219 for connecting the memory devices1204 and 1206 to respective ones of the DQ and CA ports. Conductivelines 1219 may be conductive patterns formed, for example, on a printedcircuit board, to which the memory devices 1204 and 1206 are secured.Although only two memory devices 1204 and 1206 are shown in FIG. 12, inpractice, the memory system 1200 may include more or fewer memorydevices residing on a same memory module or on different modules. Also,although memory devices 1204 and 1206 are shown as residing on a samememory module 1202, the following discussion about the memory system1200 applies to situations when the memory devices 1204 and 1206 resideon different memory modules.

For example, the memory module 1202 may be a DIMM (Dual In-line MemoryModule), and the memory devices 1204 and 1206 may be SDRAM (SynchronousDynamic Random Access Memory), although different types of memorydevices and memory modules may be used. Memory device 1204 includesmemory cells 1210 and interface circuit 1212, which may also include acontrol register (not shown). Likewise, memory device 1206 includesmemory cells 1214 and interface circuit 1216, which may also includes acontrol register (not shown). The interface circuits 1212 and 1216 mayinclude input/output pins 1232 and 1234 that are connected to theconductive lines 1219 for inputting and output DQ and CA signals. Forexample, the first set of input/output pins 1232 are connected to CA1and DQ1 and the second set of input/output pins 1234 are connected toCA2 and DQ2.

The memory controller 1220 includes a memory request generator 1224, anoperation mode register 1226, and controller logic 1222. The memoryrequest generator 1224 generates memory read or write requestscorresponding to certain locations of the memory cells 1210 and 1214 ofthe memory devices 1204 and 1206. The controller logic 1222 generatescontrol and address (CA, C/A, or RQ) signals corresponding to theparticular locations of the memory cells 1210, 1214. The CA signals mayinclude a read or write command to the memory module 1202.

The memory controller 1220 and thus the memory system 1200 are capableof operating in at least two operation modes to generate the CA signalswith different CA signaling rates. In generating the CA signals, thecontroller logic 1222 determines the operation mode of the memory system1200 based on, for example, an operation mode flag stored in theoperation mode register 1226. For instance, the memory controller 1220may determine the type or configuration (operation mode) of the memorymodule or the memory devices 1204 and 1206 through SPD (serial presencedetect) information provided by the memory module 1202 to the memorycontroller 1220. The example shown in FIG. 12 illustrates the case wherethe memory system 1200 is in a first operation mode, in which each ofthe memory devices 1204 and 1206 is coupled to the controller 1220 viadedicated CA and DQ lines, e.g. point-to-point links. When the memorysystem 1200 is in the first operation mode, the controller logic 1222generates the CA signals (CA1 and CA2) with a first signaling rate(e.g., 32 bits per one t_(RR) interval, where t_(RR) represents aminimum time interval between independent row accesses to a particularmemory device). The CA1 or CA2 port may include multiple signal linkscapable of carrying multiple bits of information in parallel. In theexample of FIG. 12, the CA1 or CA2 port may include two signal linescapable of carrying two bits of information in parallel, or the CA1 orCA2 port is two bits wide. So, when the CA signaling rate is 32bits/t_(RR), the CA1 or CA2 port may carry a maximum of 64 CA bitsduring one t_(RR) interval or during 32 t_(BIT-CA) intervals, whereint_(BIT-CA) represents a bit interval in a CA signal. Note that the CA1and CA2 ports may have misaligned (staggered) t_(RR) intervals, althoughin some examples, the CA1 and CA2 ports may have aligned t_(RR)intervals. The controller logic 1222 also serves to transmit the CAsignals and to transmit and receive memory data signals DQ over theports DQ1 and DQ2.

As shown in FIG. 12, the memory system 1200 in the first operation modehas one memory device 1204 connected to the DQ port DQ1 and the CA portCA1 and another memory device 1206 connected to the DQ port DQ2 and theCA port CA2. For example, each of the DQ ports DQ1 and DQ2 may be 4 bitswide, resulting in a data port DQ of 8 bits wide. As stated above,memory system 1200 may include more modules and a memory module mayinclude more or less memory devices. For example, a memory module maycontain sixteen memory devices, with each memory device connected to aDQ port that is four bits wide and to a CA port that is two bits wide,so that the memory module may transmit or receive 32 CA signals inparallel and 64 DQ signals in parallel. Each of the CA ports CA1 and CA2may be 2 bits wide, allowing 64 bits of CA information to becommunicated in 32 t_(BIT-CA) intervals. Since each of the memorydevices 1204 and 1206 in the first operation mode in FIG. 13 isconnected to a CA port that is two bits wide with a signaling rate of 32bits/t_(RR), each memory device 1204 and 1206 may receive a maximum of64 bits of CA information in one t_(RR) interval. Thus, each memorydevice 1204 and 1206 has at least a dedicated CA port such that CA1 isconnected to memory device 1204 and not connected to memory device 1206and CA2 is connected to memory device 1206 and not connected to memorydevice 1204. In this sense, in addition to the DQ ports DQ1 and DQ2, theCA ports CA1 and CA2 also have a point-to-point connection, providing asimple topology that is symmetrical to the topology of the DQ links. Asa result, each memory device 1204 and 1206 may be independently accessedvia the dedicated CA line. Since the topologies of the CA links aresubstantially the same as the topologies of the DQ links, the CA linkscan be operated at a signaling rate that is at the same order ofmagnitude as the signaling rate of the DQ links.

In one embodiment, the controller logic 1222 includesmultiplexing/steering logic (not shown) to enable the generation and/ortransmission of the CA signals according to the width and signaling rateof the CA links. The resulting CA data is then transmitted over the CAports CA1, CA2 to their corresponding memory devices 1204 and 1206.

The CA signals transmitted over the port CA1 are received by theinterface circuit 1212 of the memory device 1204 via input (CA) pins1232, and the CA signals transmitted over the port CA2 are received bythe interface circuit 1216 of the memory device 1206 via input (CA) pins1234. The memory device 1204 or 1206 may be a memory device of a fixedCA width that is the same as the width of the CA port CA1 or CA2,respectively. Or the memory device 1204 or 1206 may have an adjustableCA width, and the interface circuit 1212, 1216 may includede-multiplexing/steering logic (not shown) for converting the CA datareceived on the CA ports (CA1 and CA2) to parallel CA data, with theserial/parallel conversion ratio adjustable depending upon the width andsignaling rate of the CA ports.

When the memory device 1204 and 1206 has an adjustable CA width, theinterface circuit 1212, 1216 may include a control register, whichstores a flag, indicating which operation mode the memory system 1200operates in. That is, the control register has a field indicating theoperation mode of the memory system 1200. This field may be programmedat initialization by the memory controller 1220, once the memorycontroller 1220 determines the configuration of the memory system 1200.The control register may be written via the CA ports, the DQ ports, or asideband link (not shown). It is also possible to use a fuse, adedicated input pin, or another non-volatile method, instead of avolatile register field, in order to specify the operation mode to thememory devices 1204, 1206. In the first operation mode, the interfacecircuit 1212 and 1216 decodes the received CA signals at the firstsignaling rate, and provides access (read or write) to the associatedmemory cells 1210, 1214. Note that each memory device 1204 and 1206communicates with CA ports having widths of CA1 and CA2, respectively,which are each two bits wide (2 b) as an example. Thus, in the firstoperation mode, when the memory system 1200 operates with a firstsignaling rate (32 bits/t_(RR)) for each CA line, the maximum amount ofCA data communicated over each CA port CA1 and CA2 is 64 bits in eacht_(RR) interval, as shown in FIG. 12.

Note that other components of the memory system 1200 that are notparticularly relevant to illustrating the features of the presentembodiment are omitted from FIG. 12. In addition, although FIG. 12illustrates only one memory module 1202 and only two memory devices 1204and 1206 on the memory module 1202, this is merely for simplicity ofillustration and the memory system 1200 may include more memory modulesand a real memory module may have more memory devices. For example, oneconfiguration uses sixteen memory devices.

FIG. 13 is a block diagram illustrating a memory system 1250 in a secondmode of operation, according to one embodiment. The memory system 1250is similar to the memory system 1200 in FIG. 12, except that the memorymodule 1252 in this example has one memory device #1 1204, and that bothDQ ports DQ1 and DQ2 and both CA ports CA1 and CA2 are connected to thesame memory device 1204. This embodiment is similar to the embodiment ofFIG. 2.

When the memory system 1250 is in the second operation mode, thecontroller logic 1222 generates the CA signals (CA1 and CA2) with asecond signaling rate (16 bits per one t_(RR) interval), which is lowerthan the first signaling rate (32 bits/t_(RR)) in the example of FIG.12. Again, the CA1 or CA2 port may include multiple signal links capableof carrying multiple bits of information in parallel. In the example ofFIG. 13, each of the CA1 port and the CA2 port may include two signallinks capable of carrying two bits of information in parallel, or eachof the CA1 port and the CA2 port is two bits wide. So, when the CAsignaling rate is 16 bits/t_(RR), each of the CA1 and CA2 ports maycarry a maximum of 32 CA bits during one t_(RR) interval or during 16t_(BIT-CA) intervals, wherein t_(BIT-CA) represents a bit interval in aCA signal.

The memory system 1250 in the second operation mode has one memorydevice 1204 connected to both DQ ports DQ1 and DQ2 and both CA links CA1and CA2. Since the CA ports, CA1 and CA2 together, may carry a maximumof 64 CA bits during one t_(RR) interval or during 16 t_(BIT-CA)intervals, the memory device 1204 in the second operation mode in FIG. 2still receives 64 bits of CA information, same as the amount of CAinformation that the memory device 1204 in the first operation mode inFIG. 12 receives. The memory device 1204 has dedicated CA ports suchthat both ports CA1 and CA2 are connected to memory device 1204 and notto other memory devices. In this sense, in addition to the DQ ports DQ1and DQ2, the CA ports CA1 and CA2 also have point-to-point connections,providing a simple topology that is symmetrical to the topology of theDQ ports. As a result, each memory device may be independently accessedvia the dedicated CA port. Since the topologies of the CA links aresubstantially the same as the topologies of the DQ links, the CA linkscan be operated at a signaling rate that is in the same order ofmagnitude as the signaling rate of the DQ links. In one example, the CArate may be half the DQ rate, while other examples support equivalent CAand DQ rates.

As explained above, the controller logic 1222 includesmultiplexing/steering logic (not shown) to enable the generation and/ortransmission of the CA signals according to the width and signaling rateof the CA links. The resulting CA data is then transmitted over the CAlinks CA1, CA2 to the memory device 1204.

The CA signals transmitted over the ports CA1 and CA2 are received bythe interface circuit 1212 of the memory device 1204 via input (CA) pins1232, 1235. The interface circuit 1212 may includede-multiplexing/steering logic (not shown) for converting the CA datareceived on the CA ports to parallel CA data, with the serial/parallelconversion ratio adjustable depending upon the width and signaling rateof the CA port. In the second operation mode, the interface circuit 1212decodes the received CA signals at the second signaling rate, andprovides access (read or write) to the associated memory cells 1210. Thememory device 1204 communicates with CA ports having widths of both CA1and CA2, which are each 2 bits wide as an example. Thus, in the secondoperation mode, when the memory system 1250 operates with a secondsignaling rate (16 bits/t_(RR)) for each CA link, the maximum amount ofCA data communicated to the memory device 1204 over the CA ports CA1 andCA2 is 64 bits in each t_(RR) interval.

As is evident from FIGS. 12 and 13, the memory system 1200, 1250 can beoperated in one of at least two operation modes. In the first operationmode, the memory module has a first number of memory devices (two, inthe example of FIG. 12), and the CA signal width for each memory devicein the first operation mode is 2 bits wide, which is half the CA signalwidth (4 bits wide) for each memory device in the second operation mode.In contrast, the CA signaling rate for each memory device in the firstoperation mode is twice the CA signaling rate for each memory device inthe second operation mode. Having a lower CA signaling rate when the DQsignal width (or number of memory devices) increases is beneficial,because noise increases with the DQ signal width. A lower CA signalingrate makes the memory system less susceptible to the increased noise inthe DQ signal resulting from the increased DQ signal width. The maximumamount of CA signal data that can be transmitted to each memory deviceremains the same in either operation mode. However, depending upon thenumber of memory modules and the configuration and number of memorydevices in a memory module, the CA signal width is adjustable and the CAsignaling rate is also adjustable. In either operation mode, the CAsignaling rate can be at the same order of magnitude as the DQ signalingrate, since both the CA signals and the DQ signals employ point-to-pointtopology. Moreover, the CA signaling rate can be adjusted to bedifferent from the DQ signaling rate.

FIG. 14 is a flowchart illustrating a method of operating a memorysystem in a plurality of modes of operation, according to one embodimentof the present disclosure. In order to control the memory system, thememory controller first determines 1402 the operation mode of the memorysystem. The memory controller also sets 1403 the control registers inthe memory devices according to the determined operation mode. Then, thememory controller generates 1404 the CA signals based on the determinedoperation mode. Thus, if the memory system is in the first operationmode with each memory device receiving a first width of CA signals, thememory controller generates 1404 the CA signals at the first signalingrate. On the other hand, if the memory system is in the second operationmode with each memory device receiving a second width of CA signals thatis wider than the first width, the memory controller generates 1404 theCA signals at the second signaling rate lower than the first signalingrate. The memory controller transmits 1406 the generated CA signals tothe memory module via the CA ports, and the CA signals are then routed1408 on the memory module to the corresponding memory devices. Thememory devices decode 1410 the CA signals based on the operation mode ofthe memory system, and the memory cells on the memory devices areaccessed 1412 using the decoded CA signals.

FIG. 15 is a block diagram illustrating a memory system 1500 in a firstmode of operation, according to another embodiment of the presentdisclosure. The memory system 1500 of FIG. 15 is similar to the memorysystem 1200 of FIG. 12, except that the memory devices 1504, 1506 arestandard memory components that are not designed for operation indifferent operation modes by themselves. Thus, in order to provide thememory system 1500 the features of multiple operation modes, the memorysystem 1500 of FIG. 15 further includes a micro-buffer 1524, which willbe explained in more detail below.

As explained with reference to FIG. 12, the memory controller 1220 inFIG. 15 is also capable of operating in at least two operation modes, togenerate the CA signals with different CA signaling rates. In generatingthe CA signals, the controller logic 1222 determines the operation modeof the memory system 1500 based on the operation mode flag stored in theoperation mode register 1226. The example shown in FIG. 15 is the casewhere the memory system 1500 is in a first operation mode. When thememory system 1500 is in the first operation mode, the controller logic1222 generates the CA signals (CA1 and CA2) with a first signaling rate(32 bits/t_(RR) in this example). The CA1 or CA2 port may includemultiple signal links capable of carrying multiple bits of informationin parallel. In the example of FIG. 15, the CA1 or CA2 port may includemultiple signal links capable of carrying two bits of information inparallel, or the CA1 or CA2 port is two bits wide. So, when the CAsignaling rate is 32 bits/t_(RR), the CA1 or CA2 port may carry amaximum of 64 CA bits during one t_(RR) interval or during 32 t_(BIT-CA)intervals, wherein t_(BIT-CA) represents a bit interval in a CA signal.The controller logic 1222 also serves to transmit CA signals over the CAports CA1 and CA2 and transmit and receive memory data signals DQ overthe DQ ports DQ1 and DQ2. As explained above, the controller logic 1222includes multiplexing/steering logic (not shown) to enable thegeneration and/or transmission of the CA signals according to the widthand signaling rate of the CA ports.

The micro-buffer 1524 may comprise an application specific integratedcircuit (ASIC) that includes input pins 1532, 1533 and output pins 1534,1535. For example, a first set of the input pins 1532 may be connectedto CA1, DQ1, and a second set of the input pins 1533 may be connected toCA2, DQ2. Also, for example, a first set of the output pins 1534 may beconnected to CA1#, DQ1# and a second set of the output pins 1535 may beconnected to CA2#, DQ2#. The micro-buffer 1524 is coupled to receive theCA signals and the DQ signals via the primary CA and primary DQ ports,CA1, CA2, DQ1, and DQ2, the connector 1218, and the input pins 1532,1533. The micro-buffer 1524 includes circuitry that converts thereceived CA signals to have a CA width and CA signaling rate compatiblewith the interface circuit 1512, 1516 of the standard memory devices1504, 1506. More specifically, the micro-buffer 1524 is able to convertthe CA signals between two different types of signaling topologies onthe primary interface (to the controller 1220) and the secondaryinterface (to the memory devices 1504, 1506). For example, the primaryinterface to the memory controller 1220 may be comprised ofpoint-to-point high speed signals, and the secondary interface to thememory devices 1504, 1506 may be slower and wider than the primaryinterface, and may use non-point-to-point signals (e.g., multi-drop orfly-by topology). The converted CA signals are output via the outputpins 1534, 1535 and routed to the corresponding memory devices 1504,1506 via the secondary CA ports, CA1#, CA2# Likewise, the buffer 1524also converts the data signals received on the DQ ports DQ1, DQ2 to havea DQ width and DQ signaling rate compatible with the interface circuit1512, 1516 of the standard memory devices 1504, 1506. The converted DQsignals are routed to the corresponding memory devices 1504, 1506 viathe secondary DQ ports, DQ1#, DQ2#.

As shown in FIG. 15, the memory system 1500 in the first operation modehas one memory device 1504 connected to the secondary DQ port DQ1# andthe secondary CA port CA1# and another memory device 1506 connected tothe secondary DQ port DQ2# and the secondary CA port CA2#. Thus, thememory system 1500 has a point-to-point topology for both the DQ and CAlinks. However, the use of the micro-buffer 1524 allows the adjustablepoint-to-point CA links to be added to conventional memory devices 1504,1506 without changing the structure of the standard memory devices 1504,1506, by adding the micro-buffer 1524 and the controller 1220 capable ofhandling multiple operation modes with adjustable width and adjustableCA signaling rate.

FIG. 16 is a block diagram illustrating a memory system in a second modeof operation, according to another embodiment of the present disclosure.In memory system 1550, the memory devices 1504, 1506 are standard memorycomponents that are not designed for operation in different operationmodes by themselves. Thus, in order to provide the memory system 1550 ofthe features of multiple operation modes, the memory system 1550 of FIG.16 further includes the micro-buffer 1524.

As explained with reference to FIG. 13, the memory controller 1220 inFIG. 16 is also capable of operating in at least two operation modes, togenerate the CA signals with different CA signaling rates. In generatingthe CA signals, the controller logic 1222 determines the operation modeof the memory system 1550 based on the operation mode flag stored in theoperation mode register 1226. The example shown in FIG. 16 is the casewhere the memory system 1550 is in a second operation mode. When thememory system 1550 is in the second operation mode, the controller logic1222 generates the CA signals (CA1 and CA2) with a second signaling rate(16 bits/t_(RR) in this example), which is lower than the firstsignaling rate (32 bits/t_(RR)) in FIG. 15. The CA1 or CA2 port mayinclude multiple signal links capable of carrying multiple bits ofinformation in parallel. In the example of FIG. 16, the CA1 or CA2 portmay include two signal lines capable of carrying two bits of informationin parallel, or the CA1 or CA2 port is two bits wide. So, when the CAsignaling rate is 126 bits/t_(RR), each of the CA1 or CA2 ports maycarry a maximum of 32 CA bits during one t_(RR) interval or during 126t_(BIT-CA) intervals, wherein t_(BIT-CA) represents a bit interval in aCA signal. The controller logic 1222 also serves to transmit the CAsignals over the ports CA1 and CA2 and transmit and receive memory datasignals DQ over the ports DQ1 and DQ2.

The micro-buffer 1524 is coupled to receive the CA signals and the DQsignals via the primary CA and primary DQ ports, CA1, CA2, DQ1, and DQ2,and the connector 1218. The micro-buffer 1524 then converts the receivedCA signals to have a CA width and CA signaling rate compatible with theinterface circuit 1512 of the standard memory device 1504. Morespecifically, the micro-buffer 1524 is able to convert the CA signalsbetween two different types of signaling topologies on the primaryinterface (to the controller 1220) and the secondary interface (to thememory device 1504). For example, the primary interface to the memorycontroller 1220 may be comprised of point-to-point high speed signals,and the secondary interface to the memory device 1504 may be slower andwider, and may use non-point-to-point signals (e.g., multi-drop orfly-by topology). The converted CA signals are routed to thecorresponding memory device 1504 via the secondary CA ports, CA1#, CA2#Likewise, the buffer 1524 also converts the data signals received on theDQ ports DQ1, DQ2 to have a DQ width and DQ signaling rate compatiblewith the interface circuit 1512 of the standard memory device 1504. Theconverted DQ signals are routed to the corresponding memory device 1504via the secondary DQ ports, DQ1#, DQ2#.

As shown in FIG. 16, the memory system 1550 in the second operation modehas one memory device 1504 connected to both secondary DQ ports, DQ1#and DQ2# and both secondary CA ports, CA1# and CA2#. The memory system1550 has a point-to-point topology for both the DQ and CA links.However, the use of the micro-buffer 1524 allows the adjustablepoint-to-point CA links to be added to standard memory devices withoutchanging the structure of the standard memory device 1504, by adding themicro-buffer 1524 and the controller 1220 capable of handling multipleoperation modes with adjustable width and adjustable CA signaling rate.

Referring to both FIGS. 16 and 17, in one embodiment the micro-buffer1524 may receive the CA signals on the primary CA ports CA1, CA2 atdifferent widths and signaling rates depending upon the operation mode,but leave the width and signaling rate of the CA signals on thesecondary CA ports CA1#, CA2# the same regardless of the operation mode,but slower and wider than the primary interface. However, in anotherembodiment, the micro-buffer 1524 may also change the width andsignaling rate of the CA signals on the secondary CA ports CA1#, CA2#depending upon the operation mode (e.g., a third signaling rate in thefirst mode, and a fourth signaling rate lower than the third signalingrate in the second mode).

FIG. 17 is a flowchart illustrating a method of operating a memorysystem in a plurality of operation modes, according to anotherembodiment of the present disclosure. The method of FIG. 17 issubstantially similar to the method illustrated in FIG. 14, except thatstep 1701 is added and that steps 1702, 1704, and 1706 are added inplace of steps 1408, 1410.

Referring to FIG. 17, in order to control the memory system, the memorycontroller first determines 1402 the operation mode of the memorysystem. Then, the memory controller sets 1701 the control register inthe micro-buffer of the memory module to configure the memory modulewith the determined operation mode, and generates 1404 the CA signalsbased on the determined operation mode. Thus, if the memory system is inthe first operation mode with each memory device receiving a first widthof CA signals, the memory controller generates 1404 the CA signals atthe first signaling rate. On the other hand, if the memory system is inthe second operation mode with each memory device receiving a secondwidth of CA signals that is wider than the first width of CA signals,the memory controller generates 1404 the CA signals at the secondsignaling rate lower than the first signaling rate. The memorycontroller transmits 1406 the generated CA signals to the memory modulevia the CA links.

The micro-buffer receives the CA signals via the CA ports and converts1702 the CA signals to be in a format suitable for the logic interfacesof the memory components coupled to the secondary CA ports. Theconverted CA signals are then routed 1704 on the memory module to thecorresponding memory devices via the secondary CA ports. The memorydevices decode 1706 the CA signals, and the memory cells on the memorydevices are accessed 1412 using the decoded CA signals.

FIG. 18 is a block diagram illustrating a memory system with a“point-to-2-point” CA link topology, according to still anotherembodiment of the present disclosure. The memory system 1800 of FIG. 18is substantially the same as the memory system 1200 of FIG. 12, exceptfor the configuration of the CA and DQ ports 1819 and that the memorydevices 1204 and 1206 reside on the front and back sides 1802 and 1804of the memory module, respectively, as mirrored memory devices. Each ofthe CA ports CA1 and CA2 are connected from the memory controller 1220to the interface circuits 1212 and 1216 of both memory devices 1204 add1206, while the DQ ports DQ1 and DQ2 are connected separately with DQ1being connected to the memory device 1204, and DQ2 being connected tothe memory device 1206. Therefore, the DQ ports DQ1 and DQ2 areconnected “point-to-point” to the memory devices 1204 and 1206, whilethe CA ports CA1 and CA2 are connected “point-to-2-point” to the memorydevices 1204 and 1206. Such topology enables the reduction in the numberof CA links to half, as compared to point-to-point CA links, whilepermitting the CA signaling rate to be comparable to the CA signalingrate used with point-to-point CA links. The DQ signals employpoint-to-point topology in order to maintain high signaling margin andalso to minimize the data access granularity. Memory devices 1210 and1214 receive the same request information on ports CA1 and CA2 and, inresponse to requests, transmit and receive different data on theirrespective data ports DQ1 and DQ2.

Exemplary Memory Systems

The following discussion describes memory systems that employ anintegrated-circuit (IC) controller device that supports micro-threadedrequests over high-speed request interfaces for single- andmulti-memory-device topologies. The memory controller and associatedmemory device support point-to-point request and data interfaces, andthe memory access granularity is the same irrespective of the number ofmemory devices.

FIG. 19 depicts a memory system 1900 that includes an IC memorycontroller 1905 connected to a single IC memory device (e.g. a DRAM die)1910 in accordance with one embodiment. Controller 1905 includes fourmemory-controller blocks 1915, labeled W, X, Y, and Z, each of whichassembles and issues complete transaction requests provided by e.g. anintegrated or external processor (not shown). Memory-controller blocks1915 communicate data signals DQ and request signals RQ to external dataand request ports 1920 and 1925 via respective signal interfaces 1930,each of which includes a plurality of data interfaces and a singlerequest interface in the depicted embodiment. The term “external” refersto the physical manifestation of a port that is accessible to off-chipsignal lines. In a typical example, a memory controller IC is mounted ona printed-circuit board (PCB) along with one or more memory device ICs.The PCB additionally supports conductive traces that connect to theexternal ports on the controller and memory-device ICs to facilitatecommunication between them.

The memory interconnect 1935 that extends between controller 1905 andmemory device 1910 shows that each depicted DQ port from controller1905, though shown as four DQ lines, is conveyed over four pairs oflinks to arrive at a data interface 1940 as eight differential datasignals. (The circled number associated with a given signal pathidentifies the number of links in the path). Memory device 1910 thussupports thirty-two differential data ports 1920 DQ[31:0] grouped intofour eight-link data ports. Steering logic 1945 allows memory-controllerblocks 1915 to direct their respective complete transaction requests tovarious combinations of eight differential request ports, pairs of whichare shown as blocks 1925. Steering logic 1945 is shown separate frommemory-controller blocks 1915 for ease of illustration—and can beimplemented this way—but may also be implemented elsewhere, for examplewithin or between blocks 1915 and interfaces 1930. The connectivity forsteering logic 1945, and later-described data-path connectivity, isdefined using a mode register 1947 that stores a value indicative of thenumber of connected memory devices. The connectivity provided bysteering logic 1945 in this example is explained below.

Memory 1910 includes four blocks of memory cells BLKA0, BLKA1, BLKB0,and BLKB1, which may be referred to as “quads” in this embodimentbecause they represent four discrete and independently accessible memoryarrays. (Groups of two blocks can also be referred to as blocks, but arereferred to as “bank halves” for ease of illustration.) Each block inturn includes four banks (e.g., block BLKA0 includes banks a, b, c, andd). Memory 1910 additionally includes a request interface 1955 and somerequest steering logic (RSL) 1960. Request interface 1955 receivesrequest signals from steering logic 1945 via channel 1935, and steeringlogic 1960 directs such requests to appropriate blocks BLKA0, BLKA1,BLKB0, and BLKB1.

As explained below, the configurations of steering logic 1945 on memorycontroller 1905 and steering logic 1960 on memory device 1910 dependupon the number of memory devices coupled to memory controller 1905.System 1900 is a single-device embodiment in which memory device 1910can respond to requests from memory controller 1905 by reading orwriting up to thirty-two parallel data packets, each including 32 bits,for a total of 1,024 bits of data. Each memory-controller block 1915generates its own request threads, which steering logic 1945 and 1960forward to appropriate ones of the memory blocks. More specifically,each memory controller 1915 communicates requests information to itrespective PHY 1930. The request information is then provided from therespective PHY to one or more of the memory blocks via steering logic1945, channel 1935, request interface 1955, and steering logic 1960. Asecond set of request ports 1925, the lowermost two in this depiction,is provided but unused in this single-module example. Steering logic1960 routes requests as appropriate for a given memory configuration, asindicated by a memory-side mode register 1967 in this example. Modeinformation for this and the controller can be stored differently, usinge.g. fuses, anti-fuses, jumpers, etc.

In this embodiment, request threads from controller blocks [W] 1915 and[X] 1915 are conveyed to memory blocks BLKA0 and BLKA1, respectively,via steering logic 1945, channel 1935, and steering logic 1960. Theportion of channel 1935 used for these request threads includes twodifferential links. Steering logic 1945 and 1960 can be set to dedicateone link to each controller block, or the links can be shareddifferently, as via time multiplexing. The contents of mode registers1947 and 1967 define the appropriate routing and connectivity to conveythe threads to their destination memory blocks. The importance of thisselective connectivity will become evident in light of the embodiment ofFIG. 21.

FIG. 20 shows a timing diagram 2000 in which four read transactions aredirected to banks located in each of the four quads BLKA0, BLKA1, BLKB0,and BLKB1 in memory 1910 of FIG. 19. Memory device 1910 has 32 DQ linksenabled (e.g. DQ[31:0]/DQN[31:0] in a differential signaling system,where the “N” indicates a complementary signal), and two RQ link-pairsenabled (RQ[1:0]/RQN[1:0] and RQ[3:2]/RQN[3:2]). The RQ links can beenabled within interface 1955 or steering logic 1960. The CFM (and CFMN)legend shows the clock signal, or clock-from-master (and its negationfor a differential clock). Across the top, the cycles (each having alength of t_(CYCLE)) are labeled from 0 to 21.

At time T0, a read transaction is directed to bank “a” of block BLKA0 isvia the RQ[1:0]/RQN[1:0] links, which serve as two request ports, andlater the read data Q (a1,a2) is transmitted on the DQ[7:0]/DQN[7:0]links of channel 1935 that extend between opposing data interfaces 1930and 1940. Simultaneously, because the time t_(RR-N) required to presentsuccessive row commands over a different link is zero, a transaction canbe directed to bank “m” via the RQ[3:2]/RQN[3:2] links, and later theread data Q(m1,m2) transmitted on the DQ[15:8]/DQN[15:8] links. After adelay t_(RR-s), the time required to present successive row commandsover the same request link, a transaction is directed to bank “g” viathe RQ[1:0]/RQN[1:0] links, and the read data Q(g1,g2) is transmitted onthe DQ[23:16]/DQN[23:16] links. Simultaneously, a transaction can bedirected to bank “s” via the RQ[3:2]/RQN[3:2] links, and the read dataQ(s1,s2) is transmitted on the DQ[31:24]/DQN[31:24] links.

Each read transaction includes a ROW packet with an ACT command, a bankaddress, a row address, and a sub-row address. The sub-row address isnot used in this ×32 case. Each read transaction also includes a COLpacket with a RDA command, a bank address, two column addresses, and twosub-column addresses. The sub-column addresses are not used in this ×32case. The COL packet follows the ROW packet by the row-to-column readdelay t_(RCD-R). The read data from the first column access follows theCOL packet by the column access time (t_(CAC)). The read data from thesecond column access follows one column cycle interval (t_(CC)) later.Each column access produces 256 bits of data. This is serialized as 32bits of data on each of the 8 DQ links associated with a given datainterface 1940. Thus, in this example the column granularity is 32 bytes(32 B), the row granularity is 64 bytes (64 B), and each of two Qpackets (e.g., Q(a1) and Q(a2) is 32 bytes).

Memory controller 1905 maintains a queue of read and write transactions.Each transaction performs two column accesses on 32 B each in thisexample system. Operating independently, each memory-controller block1915 and its associated interface 1930 directs requests to one of thefour quads in memory 1910. The eight DQ links of data interface 1930connect directly to the corresponding DQ links on memory 1910. The RQinformation from each MC+PHY is multiplexed with one other MC+PHY inthis embodiment, though other embodiments differ. Interleaved writetransactions would steer the data in a manner similar to that shown inFIG. 19, except that the write data moves from controller 1905 to memory1910.

FIG. 21 depicts a dual-device memory system 2100 in which controller1905 of FIG. 19 is configured to communicate with two memory devices1905, for twice the memory capacity of system 1900, while maintainingthe same number of banks and the same access granularity. For ease ofillustration, the memory-controller blocks and interfaces of controller1905 are combined into slices 2105. Unused request ports are coupled todashed lines, which represent optional traces that can be provided one.g. a board supporting controller 1905 and memory devices 1910 tosupport different numbers of modules and different types of requestconnectivity.

Controller 1905 includes the same number of data ports as in thesingle-module embodiment of FIG. 19, and each data port is of the sameeight-link width. The data links from each controller slice 2105 aredivided between the two devices 1910 in this embodiment, however.Moreover, while two RQ ports are still used, one per module, they aredifferent from the two used in FIG. 19. Each memory device 1910 isconfigured so that each memory block (e.g. BLKA0) has half the datawidth and twice number of address locations as compared with thesingle-device embodiment of FIG. 19.

FIG. 22 shows a timing diagram 2200 for memory system 2100 of FIG. 21 inwhich two read transactions are directed to banks located in each of thefour read transactions are directed to banks located in pairs of quads(e.g., blocks BLKA0 and BLKB0) in each of memory devices 1910respectively labeled DRAM-0 and DRAM-1. Each memory device has 16 DQlinks enabled (e.g. DQ[3:0]/DQN[3:0], DQ[11:8]/DQN[11:8],DQ[19:16]/DQN[19:16], and DQ[27:24]/DQN[27:24]) and one RQ link-pairenabled (RQ[1:0]/RQN[1:0]). The differences is this dual-deviceconfiguration as compared with the single-device configuration of FIG.19 include:

-   -   sixteen DQ links (vs thirty-two);    -   one RQ link-pair (vs two)    -   two memory devices connected to controller 1905 via channel 1935        (vs one memory device 1910);    -   parallel operation of banks in diagonal quads, e.g., banks “a”        and “m” of memory blocks BLKA0 and BLKB0 (vs individual        operation of banks);    -   sub-row address SR[1] used to select sub-rows within the memory        banks; and    -   sub-column addresses SCx[3], SCy[3] used to select sub-columns        within the memory banks.

A read request to bank “a” is received on the RQ[1:0]/RQN[1:0] links,and the read data is transmitted on the DQ[3:0]/DQN[3:0] links.Simultaneously, the same read request is directed to bank “m”; in otherwords, banks “a” and “m” are linked for parallel operation, and theyreceive the same address fields from the request packets. The read datafrom “m” is transmitted on the DQ[11:8]/DQN[11:8] links.

After a delay (t_(RR-S)), the request to bank “g” is received on theRQ[1:0]/RQN[1:0] links, and the read data is transmitted on theDQ[19:16]/DQN[19:16] links. Simultaneously the same request is directedto bank “s”; in other words, banks “g” and “s” are linked for paralleloperation, and they receive the same address fields from the requestpackets. The read data from “s” is transmitted on theDQ[27:24]/DQN[27:24] links.

Each read transaction includes a ROW packet with an ACT command, a bankaddress, a row address, and a sub-row address. The sub-row address SR[1]is used in this ×16 embodiment. The term “×16,” or “by sixteen,” refersto the combined effective width of interfaces 1940 on each memory device1910. The combined width of the two memory devices is thereforethirty-two, just as in the embodiment of FIG. 19. Each read transactionalso includes a COL packet with a RDA command, a bank address, twocolumn addresses, and two sub-column addresses. The sub-column addressesSCx[3], SCy[3] are used in this ×16 case. The COL packet follows the ROWpacket by the read row-to-column delay t_(RCD-R). The read data from thefirst column access follows the COL packet by t_(CAC). The read datafrom the second column access follows t_(CC) later.

Each column access produces 128 bits of data. This is serialized as 32bits of data on each of the four DQ links. Two parallel column accessesproduce 32 bits of data on each of eight DQ links. The columngranularity is 32 bytes (32 B), and the row granularity is 64 bytes (64B), the same as the system in FIG. 19.

Referring again to FIG. 21, steering logic 1945 and 1960 are configuredsuch that only the RQ[1:0]/RQN[1:0] and RQ[5:4]/RQN[5:4] link pairs areused. Each independent memory slice 2105 of controller 1905 directsrequests to two of the four quads in each of memory devices DRAM-0 andDRAM-1. The DQ output ports from each slice 2105 are split between twodata interfaces 1940. For example, four DQ links from slice [W] arecoupled to block BLKA0 via the data interface 1940 that supports DQlinks DQ[7:0], while the remaining four DQ links are coupled to blockBLKB0 via the data interface 1940 that supports DQ links DQ[15:8]. Thedifferent routing of data signals in this embodiment versus that of FIG.19 uses data steering logic within the PHY interfaces that selectivelydirects data from each memory-controller block to one subset of externaldata ports 1920 in a first operational mode or a second subset of theexternal data ports in a second operational mode. In particular, thefirst memory controller block 1915 marked “W” is coupled to a by-eightexternal data port associated with data DQ[7:0] in the single-deviceembodiment of FIG. 19 and to the external data ports associated withdata DQ[11:8,3:0] in the dual-device embodiment of FIG. 21.

The RQ information from each slice 2105 is multiplexed with the RQinformation from one other slice 2105 because the RQ link-pairs areshared among two RQ ports in this example. In FIG. 21 this multiplexingfunction is depicted as steering logic 1945, but the steering logic canbe implemented differently. Furthermore, steering logic 1945 is shown tosupport the multiplexing of DQ links among the different banks anddevices. This data steering can be implemented elsewhere, for examplewithin that data interface circuitry introduced above in connection withFIG. 19. Interleaved write transactions would steer the data in a mannersimilar to that shown in FIG. 21, except that the write data moves fromcontroller 1905 to memory devices 1910, rather than vice versa as in theread case.

FIG. 23 depicts a four-device memory system 2300 in which controller1905 of FIG. 19 is configured to communicate with four memory devices1905, for four times the memory capacity of system 1900, whilemaintaining the same number of logical memory banks and the same accessgranularity for slices 2105, and controller 1905 generally. The factthat each DQ and RQ link is established via a point-to-point connectionirrespective of the number of memory devices facilitates speedperformance, and the constancy of access granularity simplifies thedesign of slices 2105.

Each memory device 1910 (DRAM-0, DRAM-1, DRAM-2, and DRAM-3) has eightDQ links enabled, two for each of the four data interfaces 1940. In thisexample, those links are DQ[1:0]/DQN[1:0], DQ[9:8]/DQN[9:8],DQ[17:16]/DQN[17:16], and DQ[25:24]/DQN[25:24]. Each memory device hastwo enabled request links, or one enabled link-pair (e.g.RQ[1:0]/RQN[1:0]).

The differences in this four-device configuration as compared with thesingle-device configuration of FIG. 19 include:

-   -   eight DQ links (vs thirty-two);    -   one RQ link pair (vs two);    -   four memory devices connected to controller 1905 via channel        1935 (vs one memory device 1910);    -   parallel operation of banks in four quads, memory blocks BLKA0,        BLKA1, BLKB0, and BLKB1 (vs individual operation of banks);    -   sub-row address SR[1] used to select sub-rows within the memory        banks;    -   sub-column addresses SCx[3:2] and SCy[3:2] used to select        sub-columns within the memory banks;    -   half of the request-packet slots are unused on the RQ link pair;    -   requests directed to block A (blocks BLKA0 and BLKA1) are        received on the RQ[1:0]/RQN[1:0] links, and the read data is        transmitted on the DQ[1:0]/DQN[1:0] links;    -   requests are simultaneously directed to linked banks (e.g.,        banks “a”, “g”, “m”, and “s” of respective blocks BLKA0, BLKA1,        BLKB0, and BLKB1 of FIG. 19) are linked for parallel operation,        and receive the same address fields from the request packets;        and    -   the read data from banks “m”, “g”, and “s” are transmitted on        the DQ[9:8]/DQN[9:8], DQ[17:16]/DQN[17:16], and        DQ[25:24]/DQN[25:24] links, respectively.

Each read request includes a ROW packet with an ACT command, a bankaddress, a row address, and a sub-row address. The sub-row addressSR[1:0] is used in this ×8 case. Each read transaction also includes aCOL packet with a RDA command, a bank address, two column addresses, andtwo sub-column addresses. The sub-column addresses SCx[3:2], SCy[3:2]are used in this ×8 case. The COL packet follows the ROW packet by theread row-to-column delay t_(RCD-R). The read data from the first columnaccess follows the COL packet by t_(CAC). The read data from the secondcolumn access follows t_(CC) later.

Each column access produces 64 bits of data, which is serialized as 32bits of data on each of the two enabled DQ links. Four parallel columnaccesses produce 32 bits of data on each of 8 DQ links. The columngranularity is 32 bytes (32 B), and the row granularity is 64 bytes (64B), the same as the system of FIG. 19. Though the steering logic oncontroller 1905 is omitted from the figure, the connectivity for thedata and request links are as shown. In this four-memory-deviceembodiment each RQ link-pair connects to all four quads on each memorydevice 1910. Interleaved write transactions would steer the data in asimilar manner but in the opposite direction from the read case.

In FIG. 23, each memory device 1910 is coupled to memory controller 1905via two differential pairs. In that case, the two links can be sharedbetween controller and memory blocks in a number of ways (e.g., via timeor wire multiplexing). In other embodiments a memory system fullypopulated with memory devices includes one request link for each memorydevice. Of interest, both the request and data widths on each devicechange in inverse proportion to the number of memory devices. The ratioof request links to data links remains constant, which simplifies thedesign and connectivity of the memory-controller blocks.

The request-steering methods used in the forgoing systems are beneficialfor a number of reasons. Among them, the various links may beinterleaved across the physical portion (PHY) of the data and requestinterfaces to facilitate point-to-point routing of both the request anddata links in PCB (printed circuit board), POP (package-on-package), andSIP (system-in-package) packaging environments. Furthermore, the samememory controller device may be connected to different numbers of memorydevices to support different memory capacities by simply setting aconfiguration register. The configuration option may be fixed, as in asystem in which the one or two memory devices are permanently coupled tothe controller component. Alternatively, the configuration option may beadjustable, as in the case of a system that uses either one or twomemory modules (also called DPP, or dynamic point-to-point) insertedinto two memory sockets which connect to the controller component.

FIG. 24 depicts an integrated memory device 1910 in accordance with oneembodiment, including all the external ports and major internal circuitblocks. The CFM/CFMN clock link is received and used by clock generationlogic (not shown) to produce the internal timing events needed by theinterface and the core. The RQ[1:0]/RQN[1:0] links receive the requestinformation for quads BLKA0/1, and the RQ[3:2]/RQN[3:2] links receivethe request information for the other two quads BLKB0/1. Each quadcontains four independent banks.

Two 32-bit request words are received in each t_(CYCLE) interval. Thesetwo words are decoded and supply control and address information to thecore. Memory device 1910, in this embodiment, supports threaded andstandard modes. The threaded mode supports concurrent core operations,which may be referred to as threading, micro-threading or mThreading. Incontrast, in the standard mode different types of operations (e.g. rowactivate, column read, column write, and row precharge) overlap betweendifferent banks in a quad, but the quads are themselves locked togetherin parallel operation (e.g. same bank/row/column addresses).

Threaded operation improves over operation in the standard mode byallowing different quads to operate independently (differentbank/row/column addresses). In this embodiment, request packets on theRQ[1:0]/RQN[1:0] links and the RQ[3:2]/RQN[3:2] are directed todiagonally opposite quads; i.e. the two request packets may be directedto one of banks 0A, 2A, 4A, and 6A and one of banks 0B, 2B, 4B, and 6B;or the two request packets may be directed to one of banks 1A, 3A, 5A,and 7A and one of banks 1B, 3B, 5B, and 7B. This includes the bank (BA)and row (R) addresses for an activate (ACT) command, the bank (BA) androw (REFr) addresses for a refresh activate (REFA) command, the bank(BP) address for a precharge (PRE) command, the bank (BR) address for arefresh precharge (REFP) command, and the bank (BC) and two columnaddresses (Cx, Cy, SCx, and SCy) addresses for a read (RD) or write (WRor WM) command. In addition, a mask (M) is used for a masked write (WRM)command. Note that all of these address and control signals are given an“A” or “B” suffix to indicate whether they are driving the two quads onthe left or right, respectively. Some of these address and controlsignals can all be optionally delayed in increments of t_(CYCLE) undercontrol of delay fields in the request.

A bank address is decoded for an ACT command. The indicated row of theselected bank is sensed and placed into the associated sense amp arrayfor the bank. Sensing a row is also referred to as “opening a page” forthe bank. Another bank address is decoded for a PRE command. Theindicated bank and associated sense amp array are precharged to a statein which a subsequent ACT command can be applied. Precharging a bank isalso called “closing the page” for the bank. After a bank is given anACT command and before it is given a PRE command, it may receive read(RD) and write (WR) column commands. These commands permit the data inthe bank's associated sense amp array (now shown) to be accessed.

For a WR command, the bank address is decoded. The indicated column ofthe associated sense amp array of the selected bank is written with thedata received from one of the 8-DQ-link subsets of the DQ[31:0] pins.Eight 32-bit words are received in one t_(CC) interval. The bank addressis decoded for a RD command. The indicated column of the selected bank'sassociated sense amp array is read. The data is transmitted onto one ofthe 8-DQ-link subsets of the DQ[31:0] pins. Eight 32-bit words areaccessed for the read transaction and are transmitted in one t_(CC)interval.

The RST, SCK, and CMD pins connect to the Control Register block. Thesepins supply the data, address, and control needed to write the controlregisters. The read data for these registers is accessed through theSDO/SDI pins. These pins are also used to initialize the device. TheVREF pin supplies a reference voltage used by the RQ receivers. Thecontrol registers are used to transition between power modes, and arealso used for calibrating the high speed transmit and receive circuitsof the device. The control registers also supply bank (REFB) and row(REFr) addresses for refresh operations. The block labeled “Power Mode,Calib., Refresh, Init Logic” manages power-mode transitions, calibrationoperations, refresh operations, and initialization.

Request links in accordance with some embodiments operate at speeds ator approaching the high-speed data links. RQ links that operate at highlink rates may require careful calibration. The following disclosure andsupporting figures detail calibration methods and circuits that can beused to ensure the high-speed request links provide suitably lowbit-error rates. Calibration involves two components that can occurseparately, or together: fine calibration (phase adjustment) and coarsecalibration (bit alignment). These can be done either in the presence,or absence, of noise.

FIG. 25 depicts a memory system 2500 in accordance with anotherembodiment, and highlights test and calibration circuitry for tuning therequest and data links. Memory system 2500 includes a memory controller2505 and memory device 2510 which may be like controller 1905 and memorydevice 1910 of FIG. 19, respectively. On controller 2505, the blockslabeled DQ and RQ may be portions of the data and request interfacesdescribed previously. FIG. 25 focuses on portions of system 2500 used tocalibrate timing parameters for the data and request interfaces, whichare represented in each of controller 2505 and memory device 2510 asopposing data and request blocks DQ[31:0] and RQ[3:0]. On controller2505, the calibration and configuration resources include a patterngenerator 2515 (labeled PattB 2515) and a conventional serial commandinterface 2530. In one embodiment, pattern generator 2515 is alinear-feedback shift register (LFSR). On device 2510, the configurationresources include a command interface 2535, a command decoder 2540, apattern generator 2545 (labeled PattA 2545), and a dummy-addressgenerator 2555. Command interfaces 2530 and 2535 are robust, low-speedinterfaces used to communicate calibration signals and information fortuning the higher-speed links between controller 2505 and memory device2510. Additional pattern generators can be included on either or bothcontroller and memory device.

In this example, fine and coarse calibration will be described asoccurring sequentially. To begin fine calibration, controller 2505issues a command via serial interface 2530 that causes memory device2510 to enter a calibration mode. In response to the calibration modecommand, memory 2510 sends controller 2505 deterministic test patternsfrom pattern generator 2545 over the data links and request links.Controller 2505 then tunes the receive phases of the controller'srequest and data interface blocks with reference to a receive clock (notshown). The dummy address generator 2555 can be used to simulate noiseduring this fine calibration. In this example, coarse calibration of thecontroller receiver can now occur; again the dummy address generator2555 can be used to simulate noise.

Next, controller 2505 issues commands to memory device 2510 that causethe data and request interfaces to enter a “loop-back” mode in whichsignals conveyed to memory device 2510 are immediately returned tocontroller 2505. (Circuits for looping back data and request signals aredetailed below in connection with FIGS. 26 and 27). In one embodiment,each even-numbered data and request link is each looped back via anadjacent odd-numbered link. For example, the data link for DQ[0] may belooped back at the memory side of system 2500 via the data link forDQ[1]. Controller 2505 then conveys deterministic test patterns frompattern generator 2515 to memory device 2510 via the even links, andmemory device 2510 returns the test patterns via the odd links.

Controller 2505, upon receiving the returned test pattern, compares themwith the originally transmitted patterns to complete fine and coarsecalibration. Because the return links are already calibrated, errors canbe attributed to issues in the forward links (toward memory device2510). Controller 2505 then calibrates the timing of the forward linksto minimize the errors.

In this embodiment the request links (RQ[3:0]) employ the samebidirectional interface circuitry as the data links, and can thus betuned in the same fashion as the data links. In alternative embodiment,loop-back paths from request links to data links may be included at thememory device for embodiments in which the request links areunidirectional. Request links that operate at lower speeds may notrequire the same degree of tuning as the data links.

The noise environment during calibration might not accurately representnormal memory-system operation. The loop-back calibration schemedescribed here may therefore be inadequate for obtaining maximum speedperformance. Memory system 2500 therefore supports a simulated noiseenvironment. In response to a command from controller 2505,dummy-address generator 2555 provides dummy addresses to memory blocksBLKA0, BLKA1, BLKB0, and BLKB1, which simulates a realistic noiseenvironment. More generally, the test procedure can be repeatedperiodically in a real or simulated noise environment to accommodatee.g. temperature or supply fluctuations.

Specific example circuitry to support the above-described testprocedures will now be described. The following FIGS. 26 and 27 detailaspects of an embodiment of memory system 2500 of FIG. 25 that supportloop-back calibration. More specifically, FIG. 26 shows read calibrationusing the side-band and transmissions from the memory to the controllerthat was previously described and FIG. 27 shows write calibration thatoccurs after the read calibration is completed.

FIG. 26 details portions of system 2500 of FIG. 25, two controller-sidedata interfaces 2605 and 2610 and the corresponding twomemory-device-side data interfaces 2615 and 2620. Each controller-sidedata interface includes a test serializer 2625, two leveling circuits2630 and 2632, a serializer 2635, a deserializer 2640, and matchcircuitry 2645. With reference to data interface 2605, serializer 2625selects either sixteen write-data bits Wdata or a sixteen-bit patternfrom e.g. pattern generator 2515 of FIG. 25. The output from serializer2625 is coupled to one of leveling circuits 2630, 2632. Each levelingcircuit 2630 and 2632 is used to coarsely align received and expectedtest patterns on a per-bit basis using known techniques. Serializer2625, e.g. a multiplexer, then converts the resulting sixteen-bit datainto serial data for transmission to interface 2616.

In the depicted example, a 400 MHz clock is distributed to both thecontroller and the memory device to synchronize their respective cores,and the data and request signals are conveyed serially at 6.4 Gb/s usingappropriately timed transmit and receive clocks. Methods and circuitsfor generating and distributing suitable clock signals, and for sweepingclock phases to correctly capture data, are known. Detailed discussionsof clock generation, distribution, and alignment are therefore omittedfor brevity.

On the receive side, a one-to-sixteen deserializer converts serialreceive data into sixteen-bit data, which is conveyed to levelingcircuit 2632. When the memory device is operational, received data Rdatais ultimately conveyed to core logic (not shown). In the calibrationmode, match circuitry 2645 examines received test data Rdata againstexpected patterns and issue phase control signals to deserializer 2640,leveling circuit 2632, and serializer 2635 of neighboring interface2610. Interface 2610 has the similar components and works in a similarfashion.

Write interface 2615 on the memory side includes two four-to-oneserializers 2650 and 2655, loop-back select logic (a multiplexer) 2660,two one-to-four deserializers 2662 and 2665, and a pattern-enablemultiplexer 2670. In the calibration mode, responsive to anenable-pattern signal EnPattAB, multiplexer 2670 directs patterns frompattern generator 2545 to deserializer 2640, which necks down thesixteen bits from pattern bus PatternSetA,B to four bits. Multiplexer2660 conveys the resulting test patters to serializer 2650, whichproduces a serial data stream to interface 2605 of the memorycontroller. Of two enable signals EnOddLoop and EnEvenLoop, the latterthe input and output buffers of interface 2615 (DQ[0] is considered an“even” link, and DQ[1] an odd). Interface 2620 has the similarcomponents and works in a similar fashion, though the input and outputbuffers are controlled by enable signal EnEvenLoop. A detailed treatmentof interface 2620 is omitted for brevity.

With reference to the upper interface pair, the test patterns traverseboth interfaces 2615 and 2605, ultimately arriving at match circuit2645. Match circuit 2645, which may be implemented in hardware or usinga combination of hardware and software, manipulates phase-adjust signalADJ_(RCK), and consequently the input phase of deserializer 2640, untilthe deterministic patterns from interface 2615 are as expected. In atypical example, match circuit 2645 might scan the phase of the receiveclock with respect to an external reference clock to find the phaseoffset centered within a range of phase values that produces correctlysampled data. Signal characteristics other than phase can be adjusted aswell (e.g., termination values, drive strength, and equalizationparameters). In embodiments that support high-speed RQ links, the phaseand signal characteristics adjusted in the DQ links may also requireadjustment in the RQ links. Match circuit 2645 then stores the resultingphase value. Interface 2610 is likewise phase calibrated at the sametime.

FIG. 27 depicts the configuration process for an “even” write link inthe loop-back mode. Multiplexer 2660 in interface 2620 on thememory-device side selects the output from deserializer 2662 ofinterface 2615. Patterns conveyed in the write direction from interface2605 are therefore fed back to interface 2610, and ultimately to patternmatching circuit 2645. Because the read channels were tuned as notedpreviously in connection with FIG. 26, errors noted by matching circuit2645 are attributable to the write channel. This process is sometimesreferred to as “write-launch” calibration, in which the transmit phaseof write data is calibrated with respect to a reference clock. Patternmatch circuitry sweeps the phase of the transmit clock via atransmit-clock-adjust signal ADJ_(TCK) in the same manner describedpreviously for the receive clock, ultimately arriving at a phase settingthat provides a desired error rate. The process can then be repeated forthe odd write links using the even read links for the loop-back channel.

In this example, all the even links are tuned together, followed by allthe odd links. The request links are bidirectional, and can be tuned inthe same way. Other embodiments may have unidirectional RQ links, inwhich case request interfaces on the memory device can be modified touse e.g. a neighboring DQ link for loop-back testing. Once all the readand write links are tuned, the system can repeat the calibration in anartificial noise environment using dummy core operations for finetuning.

In the memory systems of FIG. 19-23, the memory controllers and devicesincluded integrated steering logic to manage the flow of requests fordifferent numbers of devices. In other embodiments, the steering logicfor the memory controller can be provided external to the controller IC,and steering logic each memory IC and likewise be provided externally.The following FIGS. 28-30 depict a memory system that supports from oneto four memory devices using steering logic external to a memorycontroller and the one or more memory devices to maintain point-to-pointdata and request links and constant access granularity irrespective ofthe number of memory devices.

FIG. 28 depicts a memory system in accordance with an embodiment inwhich the request steering logic is provided external to amemory-controller IC and a memory-device IC. In the depicted system, aprinted-circuit board (PCB) 2800 supports a memory controller 2805, amemory module 2810, and three continuity modules 2815. Memory controller2805 includes four independent memory-controller blocks 2817, all ofwhich are coupled to the single, installed memory module 2810 via fourphysical request channels CAw, CAx, CAy, and CAz. Though channels CAw,CAx, and CAy are coupled to module 2810 via one or more continuitymodule 2815 and associated connectors 2820, each connection ispoint-to-point. Each request channel CAw, CAx, CAy, and CAz includessixteen CA links.

Memory module 2810 includes eight memory arrays MEM and associatedbuffers BUFF. Each array/buffer pair supports four pairs of links, somodule 2810 supports a total of 64 links in this example. Each bufferBUFF receives four independent request streams. Each request stream, inturn, is conveyed over two links and is 32 bits long in each t_(RR)interval. The buffers provide steering logic and data-width adjustmentsimilar to what is described previously as integrated with memory arraysin other embodiments. Conventional memory arrays can thus be used insystems that take advantage of some aspects of the forgoing embodiments.Memory controller 2805 omits the steering logic discussed above inconnection with FIGS. 19-24. However, a similar role is served by thepresence or absence of continuity modules. In other embodiments thecontinuity modules can be replaced with other switching mechanisms, e.g.connectors that short when a memory module is absent, or active switcheswithin connectors 2820 or board 2800. The legend at the lower rightindicates that the one installed module 2810 communicates four a 32-byterequest packet across

FIG. 29 depicts the memory system introduced in FIG. 28 in a dual-moduleconfiguration, or mode. The dashed links indicate portions of requestchannels that are disconnected by the removal of the leftmost continuitymodule 2815 in FIG. 28. The request channels that extended to thatmodule now provide point-to-point connections to a second memory module2810. Each buffer BUFF receives two independent request streams, each ofwhich is conveyed over two links and is 32 bits long in each t_(RR)interval. The request-channel width of each of the two modules is halvedrelative to the single-module embodiment, so the request-channel widthis the same in both configurations from the perspective of memorycontroller 2805.

FIG. 30 depicts the memory system described in connection with FIGS. 28and 29, but this time in a fully-populated, four-module configuration.The dashed lines again indicate portions of request channels that aredisconnected by the removal of continuity modules 2815. Each of the fourrequest channels extends to one memory module 2810, which allows eachmemory-controller block 2817 to communicate complete requests to arespective one of modules 2810. The request-channel width of each of thetwo modules is halved again relative to the dual-module embodiment, sothe request-channel width is again the same from the perspective ofmemory controller 2805. Each buffer BUFF receives one independentrequest stream, which in turn, is conveyed over two links and is 32 bitslong in each t_(RR) interval. Buffers BUFF allow for data and requeststeering, but may be omitted if the memory devices support thisfunctionality.

Memory controller 2805 adjusts bank, row, and column-address fields inrequests directed to the memory module or modules 2810 depending uponthe number of modules. Though not shown, memory controller 2805 mayinclude a register or other mechanism for indicating the number ofattached memory devices. Memory modules 2810 may likewise include aregister or other configuration mechanism. For example, memorycontroller 2805 may load a register in each installed module toconfigure the data and request ports as appropriate for a given numberand type of installed module. The memory system of FIGS. 28-30 thussupports different number of memory devices while maintaining the samedata request granularity from the perspective of the memory controller.

An output of a process for designing an integrated circuit, or a portionof an integrated circuit, comprising one or more of the circuitsdescribed herein may be a computer-readable medium such as, for example,a magnetic tape or an optical or magnetic disk. The computer-readablemedium may be encoded with data structures or other informationdescribing circuitry that may be physically instantiated as anintegrated circuit or portion of an integrated circuit. Although variousformats may be used for such encoding, these data structures arecommonly written in Caltech Intermediate Format (CIF), Calma GDS IIStream Format (GDSII), or Electronic Design Interchange Format (EDIF).Those of skill in the art of integrated circuit design can develop suchdata structures from schematic diagrams of the type detailed above andthe corresponding descriptions and encode the data structures oncomputer readable medium. Those of skill in the art of integratedcircuit fabrication can use such encoded data to fabricate integratedcircuits comprising one or more of the circuits described herein.

In the foregoing description and in the accompanying drawings, specificterminology and drawing symbols are set forth to provide a thoroughunderstanding of the foregoing embodiments. In some instances, theterminology and symbols may imply specific details that are not requiredto practice the invention. Furthermore, the term “system” may refer to acomplete communication system, including a transmitter and a receiver,or may refer to portion of a communication system, such as atransmitter, a receiver, or an IC or other component that includes atransmitter and/or receiver. Still other embodiments will be evident tothose of skill in the art.

Some components are shown directly connected to one another while othersare shown connected via intermediate components. In each instance themethod of interconnection, or “coupling,” establishes some desiredelectrical communication between two or more circuit nodes (e.g., pads,lines, or terminals). Such coupling may often be accomplished using anumber of circuit configurations, as will be understood by those ofskill in the art. Therefore, the spirit and scope of the appended claimsshould not be limited to the foregoing description. Only those claimsspecifically reciting “means for” or “step for” should be construed inthe manner required under the sixth paragraph of 35 U.S.C. §112.

Miscellaneous Embodiments

In one embodiment, a memory controller comprises: a memory requestgenerator to generate one or more memory requests; and controller logicto generate, based on the memory requests, a plurality of control andaddress (CA) signals for addressing or controlling one or more memorydevices residing on a memory module, in one of at least two modes,including: a first mode in which the controller logic generates first CAsignals for a first memory device and transmits the first CA signals tothe first memory device via a first link at a first signaling rate, andin which the controller logic generates second CA signals for a secondmemory device and transmits the second CA signals to the second memorydevice via a second link at the first signaling rate; and a second modein which the controller logic generates third CA signals for a thirdmemory device and transmits the third CA signals for the third memorydevice on both the first link and the second link at a second signalingrate.

In one example of the memory controller, the second signaling rate islower than the first signaling rate. In a particular case, the secondsignaling rate is one half of the first signaling rate.

In one embodiment, a memory device comprises: a plurality of memorycells storing data; an interface circuit coupled to the memory cells anda plurality of input and output pins including first and second sets ofcontrol and address (CA) pins, the interface circuit being configurableto receive CA signals in one of at least two modes, including: a firstmode in which the CA signals are received at a first signaling rate viaboth the first and second sets of CA pins; and a second mode in whichthe CA signals are received at a second signaling rate via the first setof CA pins and not via the second set of CA pins. In one example of thememory device the second signaling rate is higher than the firstsignaling rate. In another example, the second signaling rate is doublethe first signaling rate.

In one embodiment, a memory system comprises: one or more memory devicesresiding on one or more memory modules; a memory controller generating aplurality of control and address (CA) signals for addressing orcontrolling the one or more memory devices in one of at least two modes,including: a first mode in which the memory controller generates firstCA signals for a first memory device and transmits the first CA signalsto the first memory device via a first link at a first signaling rate,and in which the memory controller generates second CA signals for asecond memory device and transmits the second CA signals to the secondmemory device via a second link at a second signaling rate; and a secondmode in which the memory controller generates third CA signals for athird memory device and transmits the third CA signals to the thirdmemory device via both the first link and the second link at a secondsignaling rate. In other examples of the memory system, (1) the thirdmemory device is the first memory device, (2) the second signaling rateis lower than the first signaling rate, (3) the second signaling rate isone half of the first signaling rate, (4) in the first mode, the firstsignaling rate is one half a data signaling rate of data signals thatare read from the first and second memory devices, and/or (5) both thefirst link and second link are connected to each of the first and secondmemory devices, and the first and second memory devices reside onopposite sides of a circuit board on which the memory module is formed.

In one embodiment a buffer to be coupled between a memory controller andone or more memory devices comprises: first and second sets of inputpins to receive command and address (CA) signals from the memorycontroller; and first and second sets of output pins to output convertedCA signals to the one or more memory devices; the buffer beingconfigurable to operate in one of at least two modes, wherein: in afirst mode, the buffer receives first CA signals for a first memorydevice at a first signaling rate via the first set of input pins andsecond CA signals for a second memory device at the first signaling ratevia the second set of input pins, converts the first and second CAsignals into first and second converted CA signals that are compatiblewith respective ones of the first memory device and the second memorydevice, and transmits the first converted CA signals to the first memorydevice via the first set of output pins and the second converted CAsignals to the second memory device via the second set of output pins;and in the second mode, the buffer receives third CA signals for a thirdmemory device at a second signaling rate via the first and second setsof input pins, converts the third CA signals into third converted CAsignals that are compatible with the third memory device, and transmitsthe third converted CA signals to the third memory device via the firstand second output pins. In various examples of the buffer, the secondsignaling rate is lower than the first signaling rate (e.g., the secondsignaling rate is half the first signaling rate); the first and secondoutput pins have a same signal width wider than the first and secondinput pins, respectively, and the first and second output pins operateat a third signaling rate lower than the first signaling rate and thesecond signaling rate in both the first mode and the second mode; and inthe first mode the first and second output pins operate at a thirdsignaling rate, and in the second mode the first and second output pinsoperate at a fourth signaling rate lower than the third signaling rate.

In one embodiment, a method of controlling one or more memory devicesresiding on one or more memory modules comprises: generating a pluralityof control and address (CA) signals for addressing or controlling theone or more memory devices, in one of at least two modes, including: afirst mode in which first CA signals are transmitted to a first memorydevice via a first link at a first signaling rate and second CA signalsare transmitted to a second memory device via a second link at the firstsignaling rate; and a second mode in which third CA signals for a thirdmemory device are transmitted via both the first link and the secondlink at a second signaling rate; and accessing the one or more memorydevices with the CA signals. In examples of the method, the secondsignaling rate is lower than the first signaling rate (e.g., the secondsignaling rate is one half of the first signaling rate); and in thefirst mode, the first signaling rate is one half a data signaling rateof data signals that are read from the first and second memory devices.

In one embodiment, a method of operating a memory device comprises:receiving control and address (CA) signals in one of at least two modes,including: a first mode in which the CA signals are received at a firstsignaling rate via a first and a second set of CA pins of the memorydevice; and a second mode in which the CA signals are received at asecond signaling rate via the first set of CA pins and not via thesecond set of CA pins; and accessing memory cells in the memory deviceusing the CA signals. In examples of this method, the second signalingrate is higher than the first signaling rate (e.g., the second signalingrate is twice the first signaling rate); and in the second mode, thesecond signaling rate is one half a data signaling rate of data signalsthat are read from the memory device.

What is claimed is:
 1. A memory controller supporting at least twodifferent operation modes, including a first mode in which a firstmemory is used for memory access, the first memory having first andsecond sections of memory cells, and a second mode in which the firstmemory and a second memory are used for memory access, the memorycontroller comprising: a register operable to indicate mode; andcircuitry operable to direct first memory transaction requests over afirst request port to the first memory, irrespective of mode, and todirect second memory transaction requests over a second request port to(i) the first memory when the register indicates the first mode, and(ii) the second memory if present when the register indicates the secondmode, in a manner such that processing of the first and second memorytransaction requests by the respective memories overlaps in time; wherethe memory controller is operable to program the first memory to, in thefirst mode, service the first and second memory transaction requestsusing the respective first and second sections of memory cells, and inthe second mode to service the first memory transaction requests usingan addressed one of the first and second sections of memory cells. 2.The memory controller of claim 1, where the memory controller has fourrequest ports, including the first request port and the second requestport and, for each request port, an associated data port.
 3. The memorycontroller of claim 2, where each of the four request ports is operableto transmit transaction requests over one or more differential, seriallinks.
 4. The memory controller of claim 1, where the memory controllerhas a data port associated with each request port and is operable totransmit transaction requests over each request port and associated dataport using an identical bit rate.
 5. The memory controller of claim 1,further comprising a first data port operable to couple the controllerwith the first memory using a point-to-point link and a second data portoperable to couple the controller with one of the first memory or thesecond memory using a point-to-point link, the controller being operableto communicate over the second data port with either the first memory orthe second memory depending on mode.
 6. The memory controller of claim1, where the second request port is to couple the controller with one ofthe first memory or the second memory using a point-to-point link, thecontroller being operable to communicate in point-to-point fashion overthe second request port with either the first memory or the secondmemory depending on mode.
 7. The memory controller of claim 6, where thecontroller is operable to communicate in point-to-point fashion over thesecond request port to the first memory in the first mode via acontinuity module.
 8. The memory controller of claim 1, where the firstmemory is a memory module, the memory controller being operable tocommunicate with the memory module via the first request port inpoint-to-point fashion, the memory device operable to routecommunications from the memory controller to one or more memory devicesresident on the first memory module.
 9. The memory controller of claim1, where the memory controller is operable to, at least when the secondmemory is present and the memory controller is in the second mode,stagger in time the second transaction requests relative to the firsttransaction requests.
 10. The memory controller of claim 1, where thefirst memory is an integrated circuit device, and where the memorycontroller is operable to adjust a control register within theintegrated circuit device upon a change in mode.
 11. The memorycontroller of claim 1, where in the first mode the first memory uses aspecific data word size for memory transaction requests sent via eitherthe first or second request port and in the second mode uses twice thespecific data word size for memory transaction requests sent via thefirst request port.
 12. The memory controller of claim 1, where in thefirst mode the first memory uses a specific data word size for memorytransaction requests sent via either the first or second request portand in the second mode also uses the specific data word size for memorytransaction requests sent via the first request port, to utilize aconstant granularity of data transactions irrespective of the mode. 13.The memory controller of claim 1, where the first memory is anintegrated circuit device, and where the memory controller is operableto program the first memory by adjusting a control register within theintegrated circuit device.
 14. A method of operation in a memory system,the method comprising: determining mode, selected from a first mode, inwhich a first memory is used for a memory access, the first memoryhaving first and second sections of memory cells, and a second mode, inwhich a selective one of the first memory or a second memory is used forthe memory access; sending first memory transaction requests to thefirst memory via a first set of request lines, irrespective of mode; andsending second memory transaction requests via a second set of requestlines, either to the first memory or to the second memory, if present,dependent on the determined mode, in a manner such that processing ofthe respective memory transaction requests overlaps in time.
 15. Themethod of claim 14, further comprising programming the first memory to:responsive to the first mode, service memory transaction requests sentvia the first and second sets of request lines using the first andsecond sections of memory cells, respectively; and responsive to thesecond mode, service memory transaction requests sent via the first setof request lines using an addressed one of the first and second sectionsof memory cells.
 16. The method of claim 14, where responsive to thesecond mode, the second memory is operable to service memorytransactions sent via the second set of request lines.
 17. The method ofclaim 14, further comprising, at least when the second memory is presentand the second mode is determined, staggering in time the secondtransaction requests relative to the first transaction requests.
 18. Themethod of claim 14, where the first memory is an integrated circuitdevice, the method further comprising adjusting a control registerwithin the integrated circuit device upon a change in mode.
 19. Themethod of claim 14, further comprising in the first mode using aspecific word size for memory transaction requests sent via either thefirst or the second request set of request lines and in the second modeuses twice the specific word size for memory transaction requests sentvia the first set of request lines.
 20. The method of claim 14, furthercomprising, in the first mode using a specific word size for memorytransaction requests sent via either the first or the second set ofrequest lines and in the second mode also using the specific word sizefor memory transaction requests sent via the first set of request lines,to utilize a constant granularity of data transactions irrespective ofthe mode.
 21. The method of claim 14, where at least one of the firstmemory or the second memory is a memory module having one or more memorydevices arranged in a fly-by configuration, the method furthercomprising transmitting memory transaction requests to the memorymodule, and servicing the request using at least one memory device onthe memory module.
 22. The method of claim 14, embodied in a memorycontroller.
 23. The method of claim 14, further comprising programmingthe first memory to, in the first mode, service the first and secondmemory transaction requests using the respective first and secondsections of memory cells, and in the second mode to service the memorytransaction requests using an addressed one of the first and secondsections of memory cells.
 24. A memory system, comprising: a memorycontroller; a first memory having two sections of memory cells; andfirst and second request links; where the memory system supports twomodes, including a first mode where the controller is operable tocommunicate memory transaction requests to individual sections of thefirst memory via respective ones of the first request link and thesecond request link, in a manner such that processing of the such memorytransaction requests by the first memory overlaps in time, and a secondmode supporting a configuration where a second memory is also present,the controller being operable to communicate memory transaction requeststo the first memory over the first request link and to the second memoryover the second request link, respectively, in a manner such thatprocessing of the such memory transaction requests by the first memoryand the second memory overlaps in time.
 25. The memory system of claim24, where the first memory includes a first group of one or moreintegrated circuit memory devices, and the second memory includes asecond group of one more memory devices, at least one of the first groupor the second group arranged in a fly-by configuration.
 26. The memorysystem of claim 25, where the at least one of the first group or thesecond group is configured as a memory module having a primaryinterface, each request link coupling the memory module with the memorycontroller configured as a point-to-point link between the primaryinterface and the controller, and distributed between the primaryinterface and the group of one or more memory devices associated withthe module in a multi-drop topology.
 27. The memory system of claim 24,where the memory controller and each memory is embodied in a respective,discrete integrated circuit device.
 28. The memory system of claim 24,where the memory controller has four request ports, including the firstrequest port and the second request port and, for each request port, anassociated data port.
 29. The memory system of claim 28, where each ofthe four request ports is to operable transmit transaction requests overone or more differential, serial links.
 30. The memory system of claim24, further comprising a first data port operable to couple thecontroller with the first memory using a point-to-point link and asecond data port operable to couple the controller with one of the firstmemory or the second memory as a point-to-point link, the controllerbeing operable to communicate over the second data port with either thefirst memory or the second memory depending on mode.
 31. The memorysystem of claim 24, where the second request link couples the controllerwith one of the first memory or the second memory as a point-to-pointlink, the controller being operable to communicate over the secondrequest port with either the first memory or the second memory dependingon mode.
 32. The memory system of claim 31, where the second requestlink is operable to couple the controller with the first memory througha continuity module that is selectively removed to install the secondmemory.
 33. The memory system of claim 24, where the first memory is amemory module, the memory controller being operable to communicate withthe memory module via the first request port in point-to-point fashion,the memory device operable to route communications from the memorycontroller to one or more memory devices resident on the first memorymodule.
 34. The memory system of claim 24, where the memory controlleris operable to, at least when the second memory is present and thememory controller is in the second mode, stagger in time the secondtransaction requests relative to the first transaction requests.
 35. Thememory system of claim 24, where the first memory is an integratedcircuit device, and where the memory controller is operable to adjust acontrol register within the integrated circuit device upon a change inmode.
 36. An apparatus, comprising: means for determining mode, selectedfrom a first mode, in which a first memory is used for a memory access,the first memory having first and second sections of memory cells, and asecond mode, in which one of the first memory or a second memory is usedfor the memory access; means for sending first memory transactionrequests to the first memory via a first set of request lines,irrespective of mode; and means for sending second memory transactionrequests via a second set of request lines, either to the first memoryor to the second memory, if present, dependent on memory systemoperating mode; wherein the apparatus is adapted to send the first andsecond memory transaction requests in a manner where processing of thoserequests overlaps in time.
 37. A memory controller supporting at leastthree different operation modes, including a first mode in which a firstmemory is used for memory access, the first memory having four sectionsof memory cells, a second mode in which the first memory and a secondmemory are used for memory access, and a third mode in which the firstmemory, the second memory and a third memory and a fourth memory areused for memory access, the memory controller comprising: a registeroperable to indicate mode; and circuitry operable to direct first memorytransaction requests over a first request port to the first memory,irrespective of mode, second memory transaction requests over a secondrequest port to (i) the first memory when the register indicates thefirst mode, and (ii) the second memory if present when the registerindicates the second mode, third memory transaction requests over athird request port to (i) the first memory when the register indicatesthe first mode or the second mode, and (ii) the third memory if presentwhen the register indicates the third mode, and fourth memorytransaction requests over a fourth request port to (i) the first memorywhen the register indicates the first mode, (ii) the second memory ifpresent when the register indicates the second mode, and (iii) thefourth memory if present when the register indicates the third mode;where the memory controller is operable to program the first memory to,in the first mode, service memory transaction requests sent via thefirst, second, third or fourth request ports using a respective one ofthe four sections, in the second mode, to service memory transactionrequests sent via the first request port using an address one of two ofthe four sections and via the third request port using an addressed oneof the other two of the four sections of memory cells, and in the thirdmode, to service memory transaction requests sent via the first requestport using an addressed one the four sections of memory cells.
 38. Thememory controller of claim 37, where the second memory has two sectionsof memory cells, and where the memory controller is operable to programthe second memory to, in the second mode, service memory transactionrequests sent via the second and fourth request ports using a respectiveone of the two sections of memory cells, and to, in the third mode,service memory transaction requests sent via the second request portusing an addressed one of the two sections of memory cells.
 39. Thememory controller of claim 37, where the granularity of datatransactions remains constant irrespective of mode and irrespective ofwhether a memory transaction is directed to the first, second, third orfourth memory.
 40. The memory controller of claim 37, embodied in anintegrated circuit memory device.
 41. The memory controller of claim 37,where the second memory has two sections of memory cells and where thememory controller is further operable to program the second memory to,in the second mode, service memory transaction requests sent via thesecond and fourth request port using respective ones of the secondmemory's two sections of memory cells, and in the third mode, servicememory transactions sent via the second request port using an addressedone of the second memory's two sections of memory cells.
 42. A method ofoperation in a memory system, the method comprising: determining mode,selected from a first mode, in which a first memory is used for a memoryaccess, the first memory having four sections of memory cells, a secondmode, in which a selective one of the first memory or a second memory isused for the memory access, and a third mode, in which a selective oneof the first memory, the second memory, a third memory or a fourthmemory is used for memory access; sending first memory transactionrequests to the first memory via a first set of request lines,irrespective of mode; and sending second memory transaction requests viaa second set of request lines, to the first memory in the first mode,and to the second memory in the second mode; sending third memorytransaction requests via a third set of signal lines to the first memoryin the first mode and to the third memory in the third mode; and sendingfourth memory transaction requests via a fourth set of signal lines tothe first memory in the first mode and to the fourth memory in the thirdmode.
 43. The memory system of claim 42, where the granularity of datatransactions remains constant irrespective of mode and irrespective ofwhether a memory transaction is directed to the first, second, third orfourth memory.
 44. The memory system of claim 42, where the memorycontroller has a data port associated with each request port and isoperable to transmit transaction requests over each request port andassociated data port using an identical bit rate.
 45. The method ofclaim 42, further comprising responsive to determined mode, configuringthe first memory in the first mode to support four independenttransaction threads.
 46. The method of claim 45, further comprisingconfiguring the first memory in the second mode to support twoindependent transaction threads and configuring the second memory in thesecond mode to support two independent transaction threads.
 47. Themethod of claim 45, further comprising configuring each of the first,second, third and fourth memories in the third mode to each support asingle transaction thread.